


Choices

by kickassanakin



Category: Star Wars: Rebellion Era - All Media Types
Genre: Force Ghosts, Gen, Luke is Gay and Makes Mistakes, So do I, The Force Wants Anakin to Be Okay, Various Shenanakins
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-24
Updated: 2016-11-22
Packaged: 2018-08-10 18:28:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 24,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7856359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kickassanakin/pseuds/kickassanakin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ahsoka Tano, padawan to the legendary Anakin Skywalker, does not give up easily. </p><p>Even after death, she continues to watch over her old master.</p><p>Or - Darth Vader really wishes his old dead apprentice would stop making fun of the fact that he eats out of a tube.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this switches from funny to sad to funny again, I guess that's how most writing works, anyways, it's almost one in the morning and I'm psyching myself out for this WOO HELL YEAH!!

“So, how painful _is_ that suit?”

“Oh, _look_ at that terrified Imp. You’re really going to kill him over something so small?”

“You eat through a _tube_? That’s gross!”

“Come _on_. You can’t ignore me forever.”

Darth Vader clenched his fist tighter as he tried to do just that.

The young Togruta danced in front of him and stared into his visor. “Do you see everything in red? That’s got to be annoying. Did Palpatine do that on purpose?”

Darth Vader would have taken in a deep breath if his respirator didn’t stop that from happening. He was _trying_ to pay attention to a meeting on the various costs of the Death Star and how the Empire would regain its losses after than _infernal_ pilot boy blew it up. Vader did not care so much for these meetings, but anything was better than listening to the ghost of his former Padawan annoying the absolute _kriff_ out of him.

She had shown up shortly after the Death Star was blown up. She had appeared in front of him in his hyperbaric chamber, hands planted on her hips, and said, “Geez, Anakin. Obi-Wan really did a number on you. I mean, he told me as much, but _wow_.”

“ _What?_ ” He had rasped.

That was the only time he had ever spoken to her.

Months later and she still hadn’t left his side. Somehow, she was more annoying in death than she had been alive.

“Lord Vader?” An officer hesitantly called out his name. He snapped his attention to the offending officer. “The meeting has adjourned.”

“Very well.” He responded. He had nothing more to say, so with a swish of his cape, he left the room.

“You always were such a drama king.” The ghost chuckled. She stood up straight and set her jaw squarely. She placed her hands on her hips and glared out between furrowed brows. “How do I look? I’m trying to imitate you without all your _apparatus_ on.” She raised a brow at the word and shrugged. “I’ll get better at it.”

Vader continued to ignore her. He had better things to focus on, such as the identity of the blasted pilot who blew up the Death Star. He wished the bounty hunters he hired would have _something_ for him to get his mind off of the long-dead.

As he walked onto the bridge, his private comm link buzzed. He answered with a glance at the ID and a dark smile behind his mask.

“Aphra.” He said.

“A certain Mister Fett is interested in your audience, your Lordiness.” The young doctor smirked in the holo.

Vader paused. “My quarters. Send him immediately.”

Aphra gave him a mock-salute. “Aye aye, captain – “ and Vader cut the call. He was already on his way to the meeting place.

“I like her.” The ghost stated. “If she wasn’t working for you, I might think she was a good person.”  

Vader’s lip curled in distaste. He could have done _without_ the ceaseless commentary.

“What can I say? She reminds me of me, in a weird way. Guess you really can’t escape the past, can you?” She laughed. Vader found it harder and harder to ignore the ghost’s incessant noisemaking. He stalked down the brightly lit corridor of the ship and did his best to ignore the pointless rambling.

The door to his quarters slid open quickly.

“Your room is so much more _boring_ now. Where’s all your trash art?” She asked. “Obi-Wan and I used to bet on what you’d put in your room next. Come on,” she whined, “I’m sure no one would mind if you went down to the trash compactor and picked out a few choice building pieces.”

The doors slid shut in her face.

She walked through the durasteel door, a pout on her young face. “You know that won’t work on me anymore. You’re stuck with me, Skyguy.”

There was a quiet rumble as the durasteel beneath Vader’s feet shuddered. He made his way to the large viewport on his wall and glared out into the blackness of space. He could not let this _girl’s_ ceaseless existence distract him any further. His Master was watching him closely after the Death Star’s destruction, and he would accept no mistakes. Vader was certain that Palpatine was putting together some kind of replacement for him. It wouldn’t be the first time. This was another test – Palpatine would find other lackeys, and whoever was strongest would be his right hand.

Vader _always_ defeated the opposition. But something in the Force was telling him that his reign would not last much longer.

He could hear the blasted ghost wandering around his quarters. She _ooh_ ’ed and _ahh_ ’ed at the various nothings in his room – his desk covered in datapads, his hyperbaric chamber, his closet in which his other capes resided in… there wasn’t much to look at, but she was really taking her time with each stop. She had done this every time she followed him into his room, and she never failed to find something interested to gape at.

It made Vader want to rip his room apart, just to _shut her up_.

He stared out of the viewport for a good while. He knew that whatever Boba Fett brought to him would undoubtedly change everything. The Force was roiling in his gut, a sure sign that he would not like what was to come next.

There was a knock at the door.

“Gee, I wonder who _that_ could be!” The ghost exclaimed. “Come in, we’re decent!”

The doors opened quickly, revealing Boba Fett – but no pilot.

Vader had not moved from his spot at the viewport.

“I lost him.” Fett said as he walked into the room.

Vader closed his eyes and bit back a sigh. “That is most disappointing.”

Fett shook his head. “He got lucky.” He stood before the Dark Lord, arms crossed over his chest. Vader appreciated that brazen display of bravery. Clones always had been a bit of a soft spot for him.

“Lucky. None of them ever tried to shoot _you_ in the back.” The ghost snipped at him irritably.

“Did you bring me anything of value, bounty hunter?” He asked, his voice deadly calm. What came next would decide if he would live or die. Fett knew this well.

“Not much.” He began. “Just his name.”

Vader, still facing the viewport, nodded.

“Skywalker.”

Vader felt what was left of his organic stomach drop to his knees. He did not move, but in that moment knew that _everything_ was different.

“Wow, bet you didn’t see that one coming.” The ghost snorted.

Fett said something else, perhaps a farewell, but Vader did not hear him. He was stuck in the past, the one being he loved whispering a forbidden joy to him.

_Ani, I’m pregnant._

Vader’s fists clenched so forcefully he was dully surprised that his mechanics didn’t crack. He could hear the transparisteel of the viewport crackling under the pressure of his _emotion_ , but he could not do anything to stop it. It took all his strength not to run out of the ship, into the galaxy to search for his _son_.

He had a _son_.

“I’m surprised you never figured it out earlier.” The ghost said flippantly. “He’s _just_ like you. A lot nicer, though.”

Vader momentarily forgot his unspoken vow to never acknowledge her. He whirled upon her in a rage.

“You _knew_?” He asked coldly. The ground beneath her feet shook. This clearly did not bother her.

“Oh, _now_ you talk to me?” She had her hands on her hips – an achingly familiar pose he had seen in another life. “Well, yeah. I knew. Trained him a bit, too.” She grinned at him then, her sharp teeth suddenly a lot more vicious than before. “And if you want to find him, you’ll have to talk to me.”

Vader blinked slowly behind his mask. He considered the idea. Use the ghost of his old Padawan to find his son? She had been a Jedi, though, and he knew how _trustworthy_ Jedi were. The fact that she kept such a secret from him was a testament to that in itself.

“Why should I believe you?” He hissed. “You’ve been nothing but a thorn in my side since you showed up.”

She shrugged. “You haven’t given me much reason to be anything else.” Her eyes narrowed as she looked at her former master. “And of course, I have ulterior motives for finding your kid. Important Force Ghost business. You wouldn’t understand.” She tossed her head to the side, her lekku twitching amusedly.

“I understand more than you know, child.” He growled.

“ _Sure_.” She rolled her eyes. “Let me see now… which of us left the Jedi Order peacefully, and which of us tore it down and reduced the entire galaxy to a place of pain and suffering?” She crossed her arms over her chest, an unfamiliar steely glint in her eyes.

Vader mirrored her stance. “Do not give me so much credit. The Republic and the Jedi Order were close enough to tearing themselves apart. I just provided a catalyst.”

The ghost did not buy it in the slightest. “Don’t try to fool me, old man. I know _exactly_ what happened. That’s the great part about being a part of the living Force – I get the simple truth.” She huffed. “Neither the Order nor the Sith were right. You made a mistake, Anakin, but you can’t own up to it.”

“There’s no one left to apologize to.” Vader said simply. “And I am not sorry.” He added, almost as an afterthought. “I did what I felt was necessary. The galaxy would be in a time of peace, were it not for these rebels.” He said the word with disdain, but the vocoder barely registered such a tone of voice.

The apparition shook her head sadly. “There is someone to apologize to, Anakin.” She sighed softly and took one slow step forward. “Your son. Luke Skywalker.”

Vader stiffened in place.

“I will only help you find him if you promise not to… be _yourself_ in front of him.”

Vader frowned. “What does that mean?”

“It means don’t get all weird on him. He’s going to freak out enough just meeting you. Try to be… nice.”

“Sith don’t _do_ nice.”

“Yeah, well you’re a shitty excuse for a Sith Lord anyways.”

For once, Vader didn’t have anything to say to that. He was sure Sidious would agree, in any case. Instead, he strode towards the ghost, one hand on the hilt of his lightsaber. “We will get started at once. Where is he?”

“Oh, you expect me to take you to him right _now_?” She looked… taken aback, almost. “Um, no. You’re still not ready.”

Vader raised a brow. “ _Ready?_ ”

The ghost nodded. “Yep. If you two were to meet now, I’m sure one of you would end up losing a limb.”

Vader didn’t quite know how to feel about that. On one hand, he wouldn’t mind losing another arm. He was rather desensitized to such violence. On the other… he wouldn’t want to be responsible for harming his son.

“What will make me _ready_?”

She bit on her lower lip and sighed. “Obi-Wan doesn’t think you’re ready, but –“

“Obi-Wan is a fool in death much like he was in life.” Vader grumbled.

“Okay, uncalled for, but whatever.” She sighed. “You’re a real pain, you know that?”

“I don’t care.”

She groaned and tilted her head back until she was staring directly at the ceiling. “Sweet Force. Now I’m seeing what he meant.”

He held back another petty comment and watched her, his arms still crossed over his chest. “What did you want me to do?”

She looked back at him scathingly. “You’re going to drop the title of Sith Lord, first of all.”

“Not likely.” Vader responded. “I do not ever plan on returning to the Jedi way.”

“Idiot.” She huffed. “It isn’t _just_ Jedi versus Sith. What do you think I was after I left the Order?” She shook her head in disappointment. “Come on now, Anakin. No one’s asking you to go back to the Order that did nothing for you.” She suddenly sobered, her voice no longer carrying that hint of amusement. “But you don’t have to be Sith because of that. This isn’t good for you, either.”

Vader let out a cold chuckle. “Do you really think I can turn my back on the way of the Sith? I’ll be killed.”

“You were planning on rebelling against the Emperor anyways, weren’t you?” She asked, one brow raised. “Why not go the extra mile and turn your back on the teachings that put you in this miserable life in the first place?”

He shook his head. “No, Ahsoka.” The name hurt to speak aloud. “It is too late for me.”

“If it really was too late, do you think the Force would let me stay here and annoy you for so long?” She insisted. “No. I see it in you, Anakin. I know you can still do some good in the galaxy.”

“Then you are blind.” He said coldly. “If the Emperor thought I was capable of rejecting his teachings, he would have killed me years ago.”

Ahsoka scoffed, her arms crossed over her chest. “Are you really so dependent on your _master’s_ approval?” She shook her head sadly. “No, I think you’re just scared.”

“Sidious has great power. He would know if I planned on turning on him.” Vader let his voice fall flat. He didn’t want the ghost to hear how much it hurt to say those words. “I have no choice.”

“There is _always_ a choice, Anakin.” She said, in that voice that pierced his heart. He clenched a fist and held back a scream of frustration.

“Where was _my_ choice?” He growled.

Ahsoka looked at him sadly. “You made it.”

Vader shook his head stiffly. “If you thought that was a choice, then you truly never understood my reasons.”

“You can always make another choice, Anakin.” Her tone was soft.

“I can’t.” His vocoder did not translate the way his voice broke, but it was clear Ahsoka had heard it anyways.

“You _can_. And I’ll help you.” She stepped forward and held out one ghostly hand to her old teacher.

He stared at her outstretched arm, reaching towards him, for a long time.

Then, as if pushing through a durasteel wall, Anakin Skywalker reached back.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka and Anakin plan. Aphra helps.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Chapter two is kind of shorter, but I like where it ends here. Next chapter should be longer :3

“We’re going to need to get you out of here before Palpatine notices what’s going on.” She said, about a standard rotation cycle later. “But I can’t take you to the Rebellion. Not yet.”

Anakin knew why, of course, but he didn’t know of anywhere else to go. “The entire galaxy is touched in some way by the Empire. I don’t know where to go.”

Ahsoka snorted. “Oh, come on. Until we ditch this place, you have the entirety of the Empire’s databanks to help you find a place to hide.”

Anakin grunted, even though the sound was not translated through his vocoder. “I will be recognized anywhere I go. I can’t just run off while looking like _this_.”

He was sitting at the foot of his hyperbaric chamber, Ahsoka standing above him. She had her hands on her hips, her lips pursed in thought.

“You know; I might know a place. Wait here,” She said, and then disappeared.

Anakin had the pleasure of wondering whether or not he had hallucinated the entire thing before she appeared in front of him again. “Polis Massa.”

He frowned underneath his mask. “The asteroid field?”

She nodded. “Its base is considered a safe haven for those looking for shelter. It’s got a fantastic medical facility.” She frowned. “Well, it’s fantastic for being on an asteroid in the Outer Rim. But hey, we take what we can get, right?”

Anakin was not quite sure what she was insinuating. “Why would we need to go somewhere with a medical facility? I make my own repairs.”

Ahsoka shook her head. “No, Anakin, not these kinds of repairs. If you’re going to be recognized anywhere in that suit, then we need to take you _out_ of it.”

He looked up at her sharply. “That’s possible?” He was, for once, glad for the vocoder’s ability to hide his emotion. He didn’t want her to know just how much he wanted out.

“Of course. Your suit is decades old. That thing’s going to kill you some day.” She shook her head disappointedly. “We can get you out of the suit first. Then we can find a place to train. Now, grab as many Imperial credit chips as you can, and let’s get out of this dump.”

He hardly dared to believe she spoke the truth. He knew his suit was… out of date, by most standards, but he had never imagined escaping it. For all the pain it brought him, he was closer to the Dark Side – something he needed, even now. His emotional turmoil could only hold him in its clutches for so long, before he became impassive and weak. Emotional pain was powerful yet fleeting, but physical pain was an ever-present force in his world. He wondered what the world would be like when it no longer agonized him to stand, when he wouldn’t be driven mad by the harsh noise of his respirator reverberating against his scarred ears, when he wouldn’t have needles prick his face every time he left the relative safety of his hyperbaric chambers… when he wouldn’t need hyperbaric chambers in the first place.

The idea was so tantalizing to him. He wanted to leave immediately for Polis Massa and have this ordeal over with, but he needed patience. If there was one thing he learned under Sidious’ mastership, it was that patience was ideal.

Even then, he hadn’t quite mastered the art. But he knew he would have to before he could meet his son.

He didn’t quite plan on leaving behind the Sith label… at least, not in the way Ahsoka seemed to want from him. He would follow his teachings and usurp his master, certainly, but only after finding Luke and training him to be his successor. He didn’t need power; he didn’t care for it too much – not after he lost everything. But now he had Luke. And for his son, he would do _anything_. He would kill the current Emperor and gift the galaxy to his boy. It was the least he deserved.

“Anakin, you in there?” Ahsoka waved a ghostly hand in front of his visor. He did not react visibly except for a slight head tilt. “Usually your monologues are more external. Credit for your thoughts?”

Anakin ignored her and turned to his desk, where he picked up a nearby datapad. He looked over its contents quickly, taking only seconds to process its information, then placed it back down.

“We must move quickly. I am sure that with every passing moment, Sidious will become aware of my… defection.” He said stiffly. “Is there _any_ way you can be of assistance?”

She shrugged. “I can be great moral support, I guess.”

“Distracting,” He said in a clipped tone, “If that’s all you can do, I suggest you stay quiet and let me work.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. “Fine, if that’s what you want.”

Anakin sat down at his desk, picked up his datapad once more, and began making his preparations. After about two minutes of fiddling with the datapad, he set it back down on his desk and let a pleased smile crack its way onto his face. He had filtered away a decent amount of Imperial credits into an extremely private account, one only he had the power to control. Such was the power of being the Supreme Commander of the Imperial army. He idly wondered why he had never thought of doing this before while he got up and hit his commlink. He dialed in the specific frequency and waited for his contact to pick up the line.

“Ah, Lord Vader!” Doctor Aphra’s cheeky grin could be heard through the connection.

“I am sending you my coordinates and a set of false identification codes. You are to come here immediately and pick me up.”

“Wow, a date already? Listen, Your Lordship – “

“Do not test me, Aphra. Be here as soon as possible.” He cut off the connection with a sense of finality and finally realized that _he was defecting_.

Oh, if only he had done this years ago. Already, he felt a pressure lifting off of him. He would no longer be a slave to an evil master. He would no longer cower at another man’s feet. No, he would kill his old master, much like he had wished to all those years ago, as a young boy on Tatooine.

He could feel the Darkness gathering around him excitedly. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Ahsoka, her arms still crossed over her chest, a disappointed look on her face.

He did not care.

He really didn’t.

* * *

 

 “I don’t see why you needed me to come get you. You could have just taken one of those fancy TIE fighters.” Aphra said as soon as he got on board.

“Depart immediately.” He ordered, and Aphra seemed to know better than to disagree.

“Are you going to tell me what this is about, or do I have to figure it out on my own?” She grouched as she sat down at the controls and quickly launched again.

“I’ve decided to defect from the Empire and kill Palpatine. Take us to Polis Massa.”

The ship, already smoothly in the air, did not jerk at all – but Aphra certainly did. She whipped around to stare at the Dark Lord in utter shock.

“You? Picture perfect example of loyalty to the Empire?” She said, her voice too loud for Anakin’s liking. “I thought I’d never see the day. So, are you joining up with the Rebellion?” She said this with a hint of distaste in her voice, but Anakin ignored it.

“Perhaps later. But we are going to Polis Massa first.”

Aphra sighed. “Fine, _don’t_ tell me why.” She returned to her controls and set the coordinates in her nav system. As soon as they got out of range, the ship shot into hyperspace.

Anakin left the pilot’s cabin and moved towards the more spacious part of the ship. He grimaced as he saw Aphra’s two droids, Beetee and Triple-Zero, in the room he had walked in to.

“Ah, Master Vader,” Triple-Zero gasped, “It is so nice to see you! How have you been since we last met – have you killed anyone recently?”

Anakin gritted his teeth at his Sith name. That was the one thing he really did want to drop. If he was no longer Sith in the traditional sense, he did not want the name that came with it. However, changing his name in the droid’s memory banks would prove more trouble than it was worth at the current moment. He decided to change it later, after he got out of his blasted suit.

“I have not.” He said curtly.

“Oh, what a shame,” Triple-Zero said with what sounded like genuine sympathy. “Just so you know,” the droid said in a much quieter tone, “I have always preferred you over our other master. You seem much more reasonable, due to your multiple cybernetic replacements. Makes a droid feel so much more comfortable. You have no idea how odd it can be to touch human flesh without the intent to cause harm! Or, perhaps you do.”  

Anakin didn’t feel like talking to the droid that looked all too familiar. He crossed his arms over his chest and left the room without uttering another word to either droid. Perhaps, in another time, he would have found the pair oddly amusing to be around, but as it was he felt a twisted sense of familiarity every time he so much as looked at them. It made the Darkness around him swirl uncomfortably, as if it didn’t know what to make of this nostalgic, bittersweet feeling within him.

“Artoo and Threepio are doing just fine, in case you were wondering.” Ahsoka’s voice called faintly. Anakin looked up sharply, but could not see her. “Don’t worry, I’m still around. But holding that semi-physical form all the time was pretty tiring.”

He nodded in understanding (even if he didn’t really) and opened the door to his new quarters. There would be no hyperbaric chamber for him here. He would have to endure the pain until they reached Polis Massa.

“I don’t see why you have to keep your legs on at a time like this. You don’t have to walk anywhere.” Ahsoka suggested.

“I can't remove them,” he said stiffly. “I believe that would require more… _surgical_ means than we have available at the moment.”

“Oh.” She murmured softly. "I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter." He turned away from where he assumed she stood and looked to the viewport. A few moments passed, and then with a quiet rumble, the view changed from the silent backdrop of stars to the mottled blue-green-purple whorl of hyperspace. 

It was odd. Though their training bond had long since faded away, he swore he could feel a remnant of it stirring, that he could _feel_ her regret for leaving him.

He was probably just imagining it, though. How could such a bond survive after so many years – how could it survive _death_?

An interesting topic to ponder during his long wait to escape the last of his bonds.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! Let me know below! I love hearing feedback :3


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin doesn't really like Polis Massa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter three, ready to read! I don't quite know how a medical facility on an asteroid would really work, so let's just say I took liberties with it.

Polis Massa was… unexpectedly painful.

When the ship docked in the landing bay, he could feel a backlash of extreme Force energy. Had he been standing, it very well might have brought him to his knees.

“What is this?” He said to Ahsoka.

“This is where your children were born.” She said carefully. “This is… where Padmé died.”

The age-old pain of that clenched his tired heart. “Why would you bring me here?” He asked bitterly.

“It was the only place I could think of, Anakin. After all, you didn’t know about it until we got here, right? Secrecy is kind of their selling quality.” He heard her sigh. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, but… I didn’t think you would come if I told you beforehand.”

He stayed silent for a moment. “I don’t know if you would be right.” He sighed. The desire to get out of the suit battled savagely against his every cell _begging_ him to leave this place.

“I thought maybe… this might be a good place to say goodbye.” Ahsoka spoke up after a moment. “You can’t go to Naboo, or visit her grave, but she was _here_ , Anakin. And I think that’s important.”

And he could feel it. Force, even though it had been more than twenty years, he thought he could sense the brightness that had been his own personal angel. The one person he would have done anything for.

He supposed he would have to revise that statement. He had a son, after all.

A son that had been born here. The thought struck him oddly. While Anakin Skywalker had died, his children had been born. And as Vader was brought to life, Padmé had died.

That brought a chilling thought.

Sidious had always told him that _he_ was the one who had killed his wife. That the horrible moment when he had hurt her had done something unrepairable, that she had died before her child was born.

But clearly that was not true. She had lived long enough to give birth. She gave her life for her child… or, perhaps, her husband. Anakin knew – in theory – of the technique that Sidious had lured him to the Darkness with. The ability to keep those you cared about alive… at the cost of other’s lives.

Anakin felt a sickening lurch in his gut. The pieces finally fell together.

He would kill Palpatine, for sure. But he would make it _hurt_.

He rose on unsteady legs and walked out of his temporary quarters. Aphra met him at the exit. She stopped him with a curious glare.

“Boss.” She said.

“Aphra.” He responded.

She sighed and shook her head. “I don’t know what’s going on. I’d like some inside info, at the very least.”

Anakin blinked slowly behind his mask. He held back the urge to shake his head. “I’m getting out of this suit, first of all.”

Aphra’s eyes widened. “For real? You can do that?”

“We are about to find out.” He grumbled, then pushed past her and out the door. “Stay posted for further instruction.” With that, he exited the ship.

* * *

 

The workers at the small asteroid facility were more than frightened to see Darth Vader walking down their halls. With each passing terrified glare, Anakin was more and more desperate to get out of the suit.

It wasn’t that the people stared at him with open horror. No, he really didn’t care about that. Honestly.

It was what his suit represented. It was the endless pain it gave him. It was the symbol of his Master’s oppression, and he and everyone else knew it. Perhaps not in so many words, but the gleaming black carapace of Darth Vader also screamed “Emperor Palpatine” loud enough for anyone.

“L-Lord Vader! We were not expecting a visit from the Empire.” A nervous secretary mumbled as he stood from his desk. “What can we do for you today?” The Rodian tried not to show too much fear, and Anakin appreciated that.

“I’m here on business unaffiliated with the Empire.” He said in his most commanding voice. “I will speak with the finest doctor available.”

“V-very well, Lord Vader!” He hurriedly turned around and left the waiting room in search of said doctor.

“You don’t have to scare them, you know.” Ahsoka said, sounding miffed.

Anakin rolled his eyes. He just wearing the terrifying suit. The scary attitude just kind of _happened_ on its own.

Within seconds, the secretary was back, behind him was a prim-looking Togrutan woman who was hiding her own fear exceptionally well. It was almost as if she was familiar with shielding techniques. Anakin took a moment to gauge her Force presence - it was weak, but she still had the Force at her will. Anakin assumed she didn't even know she had such abilities, and they manifested unconsciously. It was common for weaker Force users.

“This is Doctor Vuna Weshaak. She will see you now.” The Rodian made haste for the opposite direction. When he reached his desk, he sat low in his seat, clearly trying to escape attention. 

Vuna extended one hand towards Anakin. “It is nice to meet you, Lord Vader,” she said evenly, “I hope my services provides helpful today. I’d like to ask you to come with me to my office, where we can have a more private conversation.” She eyed the room around them knowingly.

Anakin decided he rather liked this woman.

“Gee, I wonder why.” Ahsoka grunted.

“Lead the way.” Anakin replied to the doctor, firmly shaking her hand (and careful not to break it).

The woman turned and made way for a small hallway. Anakin had to duck to fit under the threshold, and vaguely wondered if she had led him this way on purpose.

They stopped at the far end of the hallway, where a little room sat further away from the rest. Anakin could feel the Force throbbing in his skull, and he instinctively knew this room.

Knew what had happened inside of it.

“Uh,” he started, then stopped himself. He couldn’t show fear. He couldn’t hesitate.

Vuna turned her head to look at him. “Is there a problem, Lord Vader?” She asked coolly. Anakin grunted and shook his head.

“No. Continue on.”

“Very well.” She sounded like she didn’t quite believe it, but opened the door to the room and stepped inside. Anakin had to focus on his footsteps – if he directed attention away from this monumental task, he might falter, or turn and run, and he couldn’t do that now.

The room itself was pretty barren, it had a patient’s table in the middle of the room – something he would not touch – and a comfortable looking pair of chairs. It looked like they had been placed there in a hurry. Vuna sat down in one and crossed her legs.

“This room is the most private area in our facility.” She stated. “We can discuss anything you like with full confidentiality.”

With a quick scan through the Force, he noticed no bugs or other recording devices set up in the room. They really did know their stuff.

“So,” she said carefully, “What seems to be the problem?” She looked pointedly at the other seat, but Anakin did not take it. If he sat down, he might not be able to get back up.

“This suit.” He would get right to it. Vuna’s eyes widened just a fraction.

“Wouldn’t that be more suitable for a mechanic to deal with?” She tilted her head.

“No,” Anakin shook his head, “I want to be taken out of this suit.”

“Oh.” She said. “Why is that?”

“I plan on killing the Emperor.” Anakin stated. “And I don’t want him to see me coming.”  He wasn't exactly lying. His true purpose was to be free of the constant pain, to see colors other than varying shades of red, to breathe of his own volition, to speak with a voice that was his own - his true purpose was to be _free_. 

But once he was free, killing Sidious would be an excellent bonus.

Vuna certainly looked surprised at that. But she quickly schooled her expression into that of steely indifference. “I see,” she nodded, “Then one more question – why do you expect us to help you? We could just kill you in surgery, and no one would be the wiser.”

“I was under the impression that this medical facility is for those who need help,” Anakin said flatly, “And I am in need of help.”

She stared at him for a good minute, then nodded. “Yes, I suppose we have to help you, don’t we?” She gave him a small, sharp-toothed smile. “Let’s get started.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Next week we get to see how Anakin's doing.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin takes one step closer to freedom, while everyone else sits back and watches with mild horror.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I added in some personal Vadersuit headcanons (some which have also proven to be canon within recent Vader comics) so, you know, there's some body horror discussion going on.

Ahsoka was… nervous.

She had no reason to be – she was one with the Force, after all, and knew every outcome to the situation – but there was still a part of her that hated seeing her old master undergo such a long, dangerous process.

Because of this, she couldn’t stand to leave Anakin’s side, even when he went under and the surgery began.

She wanted to – _Force_ , it was hard watching them burn off his dead, rotted skin that had grown over the connecting gears between his flesh and prosthetics, but she had to stay, for Anakin’s sake, because he would have done the same for her many years ago. And perhaps he would feel the same way again one day.

But she wanted to leave. She wanted to disappear and come back once everything was done, she wanted to leave and not return until he looked like her _friend_ again.

She wouldn’t, though. Because she loved Anakin, in her own way, and he deserved this at the very least.

“I see you’re having a hard time watching.” Obi-Wan’s voice called out to her. She shook herself out of her panicked reverie and sighed.

“It’s hard.” She said. “I don’t want to see him like this.”

Obi-Wan, like her, was able to manifest wherever he wanted to be. He was, like her, a remnant of the Living Force made conscious. It helped to know she wasn’t always alone like this.

At that moment, he decided to appear before her, as well. “Why do you think I’ve avoided him for so long?” He said with a tired, sad smile. “I was scared too.” He stroked his beard and fixed Ahsoka with a careful gaze. “But you are doing something important for him. Something that, if he knew, I’m sure he would appreciate.”

She tilted her head. “I’m just doing my best, master.”

Obi-Wan shook his head. “You are showing him a kindness he has not seen in decades, Ahsoka.”

She took a deep breath in and sighed. “I guess you’re right.” She shook her head and bit her lip. “It would be a lot easier if you were around to help more often, though.”

Obi-Wan shrugged, a knowing glint in his eye. “I have others to look after.” He put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “I am absolutely confident in your abilities in helping our wayward friend.”

“Thank you, Obi-Wan.” She touched the hand on her shoulder and smiled. “I will bring him back to the Light. I promise that much.”

“That’s all anyone can ask from you.” He responded. “The old way of the Jedi was never meant for someone like Anakin.” He paused, then smiled sheepishly. “Or any other Skywalker, I think.” He shook his head good-naturedly. “Yoda doesn’t like what I have to report, most of the time.”

“Like father like son, huh?” Ahsoka raised a brow.

Obi-Wan shrugged. “I think he takes more after his mother. Leia, on the other hand…”

Ahsoka cracked a smile at that. “I’m not surprised. Helping her learn to shield was hard enough. Was that what it was like with Anakin?”

Obi-Wan chuckled softly. “You have no idea.”

The two embodiments of the Living Force shared a quiet moment of hope. Perhaps they _could_ change things.

They listened as the harsh noise of Anakin Skywalker’s forced breaths became softer and softer, until finally, there was silence.

* * *

When he opened his eyes, the harsh lights of the medical facility forced him to immediately shut them again. He had no idea what he was doing here – had he fallen asleep in his hyperbaric chamber without noticing?

“Oh, Lord Vader – you’re awake?” Vuna’s calm voice brought him back to the present.

Ah, right.

He opened his mouth to speak, but found his vision swimming before he could gather up enough breath to speak.

“Don’t worry, that’s just a side-effect of the drugs.” She said. “You woke up a little earlier than scheduled. You still have a few more surgeries to go through, but I suggested that everyone get a little break before we continue.”

He blinked, confused and dizzy, and could vaguely see her shape – or was it Ahsoka? Come into view.

“We’ve managed to get you hooked up to a much quieter breathing modulator for the time being. Your severed limbs are going to heal nicely from now on, as long as you stay in bed and listen to what the doctor tells you.” She sat down next to him, and his vision cleared enough for Anakin to make out her facial markings. Not Ahsoka.

He dimly remembered the conversation they had before he was put into surgery.

He had insisted that they find a way to take as much of him out of the suit as possible. He knew how difficult that would be, especially considering the ages upon ages his damaged skin has had time to get even more karked up, but he wanted some semblance of his humanity back. Anything.

He had the credits to get it, too, so that wouldn’t be a problem.

“Your scar tissue really is a lot more messed up than you give yourself credit for.” Vuna interrupted his thoughts. “How long ago was this even done? My calculations say some of these are about twenty years old, but there’s no way that’s right. You had next to no medical care after the initial injuries. Who was your doctor?”

Anakin cracked a thin smile. “Emperor Palpatine, of course.” He coughed with the effort of speaking. “It was pretty clear to me that he has never been to a medical academy in his life.”

Even though it was supposed to be somewhat of a joke, Vuna didn’t seem to find it very funny. Her eyes narrowed.

“Do you know what he did to you?” She asked carefully. Anakin shrugged.

“He put me in the suit.”

Vuna shook her head. “Yes, but do you know what else he did?”

“Hmm.” Anakin thought for a moment. “I know he made me taller. That still hurts, sometimes.”

She inhaled deeply through her nose and sighed. “Did you know,” she said slowly, “that he installed a – failsafe?”

The ex-Sith blinked slowly. “A what now?”

“A – well – I don’t think it’s a bomb,” she began uncomfortably, “But it was grafted into the implanted spine part he – put on.” She floundered for a moment, lost for words, but after another deep breath regained her composure. “It was either a bomb or some sort of override device, controlled remotely.”

“Huh.” Anakin blinked again. “That sounds like something he would have done.” He sighed, then looked at his doctor. “Never trust a Sith. They love body modification, even if it doesn’t help in any conceivable way.” He chuckled quietly. “And they love to routinely take you apart to make sure your organs are functioning quite well.”

Vuna paled. It took her another moment to come back from that revelation. She closed her eyes for a second, inhaled deeply, then focused back on him with a new line of inquiry.

“You know; we do a blood check on every patient that comes in for surgery.” She said flatly. “Usually it’s to check for allergies, to test the midichlorian count, check for any potential diseases that didn’t show up on other tests. We don’t use it often for identifying patients.” She gave him a side-eyed glance. “You’d be surprised to know that certain people have been wiped from most DNA databases, but not ours.”

Anakin closed his eyes and sighed. “So you know who I am, then?”

“I wouldn’t know for sure.” She said, eyeing him carefully. “These things aren’t always accurate. The ups and downs of old technology.”

“Right,” He swallowed heavily, “Well, if it _was_ – correct, that is – would you do anything differently?”

She regarded him with sharp eyes for a time. Anakin was painfully aware that this woman was in charge of whether or not he lived or died.

“You’re already Darth Kriffing Vader. I would get more satisfaction over killing you than I would killing the Hero with No Fear. And who would I brag about it to?” She shook her head. “No, I wouldn’t do anything differently.” She pursed her lips. “But I get the most satisfaction out of the idea that I’m bringing that Hero back.”

Anakin laughed, which turned into another hacking cough. “I don’t think he’ll ever come back.” He shook his head. “No, his time has passed. But there is always hope for the future generation, is there not?”

Vuna raised a knowing brow. “I suppose there is.”

A nearby alarm went off. Anakin’s decades-old instincts kicked in and he shot up in his bed, searching for the noise.

Vuna reached for the alarm clock on the table next to her and turned it off. She looked at the man before her and smiled politely. “Break’s over. Back under you go.”

* * *

 

Luke Skywalker had returned to the Rebel base. At the moment, the main forces were between planets. For the time being, the home base was the large headquarters frigate known as Home One.

He had been sleeping roughly these past few nights. Something in the Force was changing, and he was all too aware of it. The energy around him felt supercharged, and every moment conscious felt like he was a blaster about to be fired. The smell of ozone lingered in his nostrils, although no one else seemed to notice it – unless he was on the flight deck, where ozone, oil and grease were common smells.

He didn’t know it, but halfway across the galaxy, the Force _was_ changing. Anakin Skywalker’s old, rotting body had finally been healed. The wounds less physical would be soon to follow.

Once again, the balance of the Force shifted. The Dark followers would understand that just because Light is _considered_ weak doesn’t mean it is. They would learn that the Light can burn brighter than the hottest star – hot enough to scald their very souls.

Anakin Skywalker had returned, and he would change everything.

Luke did not know any of this. But he would come to know it eventually. At the moment, all he knew was that the Force was screwing with him, and he wished he could get a kriffing good night’s sleep.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aftermath of Anakin's medical treatment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a little longer this week! I thought these bits all worked well together. Anyways, hope you enjoy!

“Would you like to see?” Vuna asked from his bedside.

Anakin had been awake for about five minutes after the last round of intensive surgeries. The drugs were slowly being flushed from his system. He blinked, still pleasantly surprised to be able to see without the infuriating red haze, and nodded.

The doctor handed him a small mirror. He took it in his trembling hand – Force, he could feel everything so much clearer with this prosthetic – and peered at himself, his face, for the first time in years.

He would willingly admit he looked like shit. His eyes were tired, sunken into his skull, his lips thin, his skin horribly pale. He looked like he was going to keel over at any minute.

But he looked _human_.

A smile broke out over his deathly features. It was him, undoubtedly. He could see his old self in the cut of his jaw, in the quieted glint in his eyes, in his strong nose. He looked up at Vuna, who stared at him with an odd expression on her face. He didn’t care.

“Thank you,” he said, and he meant it. He noticed that there was a tiny vibration in his throat as he spoke, and his voice wasn’t as raspy or rough as it had been.

The odd expression deepened.

“Never thought I’d be thanked by Darth Vader.” She said plainly.

He shook his head. “I’m not.” At her head tilt, he continued. “Darth Vader. That’s not my name. That was the name my Master gave me.” He narrowed his eyes. Oh, it certainly still hurt, but it was different now. It would heal. “It was the name of the man who was enslaved to the Dark.”

Vuna nodded. “I thought as much.” She said this with a small smile. “So, what is your name?”

He snorted. “You know it already.”

“I might,” she shrugged, “But I’d like to hear it from you.”

“All right.” He took a deep breath through his nose – what novelty! – and smiled. “Anakin Skywalker.”

She snorted. “Never thought I’d be thanked by Anakin Skywalker, either.”

He looked down. “I never thought I’d see him again.”

“Neither did I.” She responded, even though the statement clearly wasn’t for her. “Yet here he is. The Hero with No Fear.”

Anakin laughed bitterly. “I don’t deserve that name. Not any more.” He shrugged, reveled in the pain, and sighed. “I did so many horrible things out of fear. I was more than afraid, Vuna. I was _terrified_.” He shook his head. “Terrified of losing everything. And by acting on my fear, I lost everything anyways.”

“I’m not a mind healer.” Vuna said. “I can’t help you with this.”

Anakin chuckled softly. It wasn’t a happy chuckle. “No, I wouldn’t expect you to. I have hurt the entire galaxy with my actions. I’m not sure a mind healer would want to help me.”

Vuna raised a brow. “Just like no other medical officer would want to help you?”

Anakin paused. “I suppose you’re right.” Then shook his head. “But I wouldn’t want to burden anyone else with all of my sins.”

Vuna shrugged. “That’s up to you, I guess.” She looked at the alarm clock still on his bedside table and frowned. “I have to go check on my other patients. As your doctor, I order you to stay in this bed and get rest for at least another week.” She frowned. “But if you need to leave quickly… I’d suggest a bacta tank for about three days, at the very least.”

Anakin nodded. “Thank you, Vuna. I won’t forget you.”

She smirked. “You better not. I’ll be checking in on you every couple of hours.”

With that, she left the room. Anakin wondered when she had switched from coolly distant doctor to something more of an acquaintance. Perhaps with his identity reveal, although he would have assumed that would have made her hate him even more.

“So, like what you see?” Ahsoka appeared beside him.

He mustered up a small smile for his old padawan. “It’s better than before, certainly.”

She placed a hand on her chin and regarded his features for a moment. Then, “I look better, and I’m _dead_.”

“You died young.” He grunted, then immediately felt bad for saying as such.

“Yeah, but Obi-Wan died an old man, and he looks fine too.” Ahsoka grinned. “We don’t always have to look like we were when we died.”

“Good to know I have something to look forward to when I die, too.”

Ahsoka frowned. “I don’t know if you’ll come back like us.” Her eyes turned toward the ceiling. “I mean, it’s possible, but the Force brought us back because we needed to change things. By the time you die, we might not be needed for that any more.”

Anakin raised a brow. “Have you ever known me to follow the rules?”

“No, I guess not.” She shrugged, then smiled. “If anyone were to do it, it would be you.”

“So,” He sat up and looked his friend in the eye, “When do we leave?”

* * *

After a week on Polis Massa, Anakin finally convinced Ahsoka to let him leave.

She couldn’t very well have stopped him had he decided to leave earlier, but he wanted her support, and if that meant staying put for a few days while his body healed, then he would do just that.

Didn’t make it any less kriffing boring, though.

Vuna had been kind enough to give him back his comm device so he could contact Aphra. He would be on his way within the day, one last dunk in the bacta tank notwithstanding.

“See?” Ahsoka said smugly. “Listening to what other people tell you to do _can_ be good for you once in a while!”

Anakin flipped her the mynock as he swung his legs out of the bed.

He couldn’t remember the last time he had stood up without suffering. Now it was as if he was truly free from his Dark shackles.

Still, a thought interrupted, he would never truly be rid of the Dark. He had lived entrenched in it for so long that there wasn’t much hope of ever entirely returning to the Light. He wasn’t even sure the Light was meant for him. It had always been too quiet, too peaceful, too… inactive. The Dark, while disastrous for the most part, _worked_ for him, easier than the Light ever had been.

He took one step toward the bacta tank. He didn’t really want to get in it one more time, especially when that meant he had to take off his prosthetics, then wait for the joints to dry off for about an hour after the tank before he could put them back on again, but they were the doctor’s orders, and also Ahsoka would do everything in her power to get him in the tank, flimsy physical Force-presence be damned.

“At least you’ve got a physical body to be worried about,” and the way she said this, nonchalant but looking away…

Anakin didn’t waste any time in getting in and out of the bacta tank. He may not care too much about himself, but other people did, and he couldn’t just throw his body away when his closest friends weren’t even on the physical realm.

If he didn’t notice the relieved look on Ahsoka’s face, well. He didn’t need to know about that.

* * *

Aphra didn’t quite know what to make of this situation.

Darth Vader, the Dark Lord, the Emperor’s iron fist, was a weak-looking old man with pale skin and tired eyes.

She certainly hadn’t expected the damage to be that bad. Sure, she knew the damage must have been extensive to warrant that walking life support suit, but she hadn’t imagined… just _how_ extensive.

He had comm’ed her early in the morning cycle. She had been nearby Polis Massa, circling like a scavenger waiting for its next meal. Her comm link opened up to an audio-only transmission.

“Pick me up from the loading dock in one hour.” The familiar voice was… off. Distorted. As if his vocoder had been tampered with. In all seriousness, it was only a minor change in pitch, something most humans wouldn’t pick up on – or if they did, something they wouldn’t get too paranoid about.

But that’s the thing about Doctor Aphra. Paranoia is a girl’s best life-saver, after all.

When she landed, she ordered Triple Zero and Beetee to wait just inside the ship in case anything went wrong. The two droids did not like being told to wait, but had no choice in the matter.

Aphra stepped down into the docking bay and was met with a strange, pale older man who looked like he had seen much better days. He had a loose-fitting black tunic on with baggy pants that were obviously something patients wore while at the medical center. Aphra could see a respirator poking out from underneath his shirt. He had a vocoder, but it was tactfully placed where it wouldn’t be noticed often – only a tiny divot in the crook of his throat indicated such an invasive procedure had been done.

Luckily, Aphra knew reconstructive surgeries well. Perhaps it was different for humans, but putting something back together again was really what she did best.

“Hello, Doctor Aphra.” He said calmly. “It’s me.”

“What?” She frowned. “Sorry, do you know me?”

The older man raised a brow. “You’ve never imagined what was underneath that mask?”

It took Aphra an embarrassingly long second to understand what the man was saying. “Oh! Oh. _Ohh_. So they did it.”

She waved a hand behind her back to signal to the droids that there was no need to come out. Beetee made an upset hissing noise as he rolled up into the ship.

“Yes, they did.” He said needlessly. Aphra frowned.

“You’re different.”

Vader narrowed his eyes. Aphra didn’t know whether to be scared of the small smile he wore or not. “That’s perceptive of you. It’s been what, less than a minute?”

Aphra shook her head. “No, the way you talk. You’re all about punctuality and efficiency and – and not _this_.” She gestured to all of him.

“That was Darth Vader.” He said, and with his next words he completely turned Aphra’s galaxy upside-down. “I’ve renounced that name. I’m Anakin Skywalker. Ex-Jedi, ex-Sith.” He held out one hand to shake hers. “I also find that the absence of constant agony has lightened my mood a bit.” His head tilted with a small (clearly still painful) smile.

She shakily extended her own hand. She didn’t quite understand what was going on, but it seemed important to him, and if she went along with it he might not kill her when he was done with whatever bout of craziness this was.

“You sure this is what you want?” Curse her curious nature.

Anakin – Vader? – smiled. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you've got any questions, let me know!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin frets over what to do next. A different Skywalker gets some news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At first I thought I might be rushing things, but then I thought "Anakin is not very patient, so whatever," so here we are now.

“Ahsoka, come on.” He leaned back in his seat and threw his hands in the air. “What more do you need from me?”

They were in his makeshift room on the Ark Angel. They had just left Polis Massa, and Aphra was checking over her ship while Anakin figured out where to go next.

The Togrutan ghost raised one brow at him. “You got out of your suit and renounced your Sith name to a _few_ people. Now you need to do it on a more galaxy-wide scale.”

Anakin made a face. He was new to making faces. This was wonderful, even if it still stung just a bit. “Why? They’ll know what happened eventually. Sidious can’t keep a secret like this for long.”

Ahsoka shook her head. "That's not what I mean." She cleared her throat (a useless action if she didn't have a body, Anakin thought) and fixed him with a focused gaze. "You need to say it _first_." 

The ex-Sith scoffed. "Why do I need to do it first?" 

"Wouldn't you seem more trustworthy to the Rebellion if you did?" She narrowed her eyes. "If you wait until Sidious says something, they might not trust you."

 

"That's ridiculous." Anakin rolled his eyes. "Either way, they won't trust me." 

Ahsoka fixed him with a stern glare. Anakin was distinctly reminded of his mother. “You need to announce who you are to the galaxy. If you don't, he will do it for you. What do you think he'll say about you?”

Anakin sighed, clearly cowed into her plan. “But I’m not… who I was. Look at me. Who would believe I was Anakin Skywalker, let alone Darth Vader? Who would believe I managed to escape the Emperor alive?”

A knock sounded at the door. Aphra stood in the doorway, a worried look on her face.

“Hate to interrupt this fascinating conversation with yourself, but there’s something you should see.” She bit her lip and looked up to the ceiling. “And don’t kill me for this, please.”

Anakin stood up with a frown. “I don’t do random murder anymore.”

“Oh really?” She replied with a nervous smile. “What about Security Detail two weeks ago?”

“This is a recent development.”

“Lucky me.” She jerked her head towards the main space and hurried off.

“This should be good.” Ahsoka said drily.

“Shut up.”

* * *

Sidious’ face was in glorious, disgusting high-definition on Aphra’s holoscreen.

“-it would seem,” he said with a sad note in his voice, “that I have misplaced something very dear to me.” His eyes looked directly into the camera – and it felt like he could see through straight to where Anakin was standing. “This item is of the utmost importance to me. I will pay handsomely for its return.” He smiled then, an old, grandfatherly smile that softened hearts and minds alike.

Anakin felt like he was going to be sick.

“Do not worry, my dear Empire,” he raised his hands, still smiling, still staring _right at Anakin_ , “My precious belonging will find its way back to me. And if not…” He chuckled.

To almost any other being, that chuckle would sound like any other kind of elderly loving humor.

But Anakin knew that laugh. That laugh meant pain. It meant lightning running through his circuits, pain lancing through his spine, being forced to his knees; it meant total submission to his Master. A chill went up his spine. 

“If not,” Sidious continued, “it would not be too difficult to make something even better.”

With that, the signal cut off, and returned to a regular Imperial news station. Anakin felt nauseous.

Aphra looked the cyborg over once. “He thinks you’re his toy?”

“What gave you _that_ idea?” Anakin growled as he stormed past her. “Of course I am. He turned me into the galaxy’s deadliest weapon.” He began to pace in the hold, his mind racing a mile a minute. “He knows I’ve deserted. He knows what I want to do.” He shut his eyes tight and shook his head furiously. “Sithspawn. He’s going to go after Luke.”

“Luke?” Aphra tilted her head. “Someone I should know?”

“No!” Anakin turned on her, his eyes blazing. “No, he is not someone you should know, and if you value your life, someone you will _never_ meet.” His lip curled up in a snarl. If anyone else knew about him, that could be a weakness. One more person who could share his secret. One more person he would have to kill to keep quiet.

“I thought you weren’t murdering your friends anymore.” Ahsoka’s disembodied voice piped up.

Anakin froze.

He had been so caught up in his old Master’s machinations that he hadn’t even realized he was… slipping. As a testament to her character, Aphra didn’t seem that flabbergasted by Anakin’s outburst. Perhaps she had just been waiting for it. After all, it had been a crazy couple of weeks.

He turned away from Aphra. “I apologize for threatening your life.” He sucked in a deep breath. “Luke is my son. He is a prominent leader in the Rebellion.”

Aphra whistled. “You’re a dad, huh? Nice. Guess the kid didn’t want to be Darth Junior?”

“He is currently unaware of his parentage. He was stolen –“ He paused. “ – _hidden_ away from me. I had assumed he had died with his mother.”

Aphra nodded slowly. Anakin didn’t need to turn around to know that she had a thinking face on. “So you plan on joining up with him in the Rebellion?”

“… Perhaps.”

“I don’t see why you wouldn’t. I mean, political differences aside, that’s where you can best protect him.”

He nodded slowly. “That’s true, but…” He shrugged, _almost_ sheepish. “I don’t know how to get into contact with them.”

“Leave it to me, boss.” Aphra gave him a mock salute. "I'm the best at finding things that don't want to be found." She flashed him a lazy grin.

Anakin frowned. “I thought you didn’t like the Rebellion.”

The good doctor shrugged. “I’ll go where my chances of survival are highest. With you, especially with you on your new ‘actively trying to not kill subordinates’ kick, my chances look pretty kriffing high.”

Anakin sighed. “Fine. Get it done fast.”

He moved to return to the cargo bay, where he could discuss this more with Ahsoka in private, but paused at the last minute. “Aphra?”

She tilted her head quizzically. “Yeah?”

He offered her a tiny smile. “Thank you.”

With that, he left.

* * *

“Leia Organa, report to command center.” The commlink on her wrist beeped at her annoyingly. 

“I’m coming!” She hissed into her receiver. “Stop sending the same message every ten seconds!” She ran a hand nervously through her hair, hoping it didn’t look too ruffled.

“You look fine,” Han said, not far behind. He had a shit-eating grin on his face that Leia just wished she could wipe off.

“Kriff off.” She shouldered past some other rebels as she hurried to the center of Home One’s base.

“Oh, you wound me. So soon after our latest tryst in the closet?” Han whined, grin still plastered all over his face.

Leia groaned and walked faster, desperate to get away from his jeering.

“Leia Organa, report to – “

“Oh, shove it!” She yelled and slammed her commlink off. “I’m almost there.”

“Someone’s testy.” Han stepped back in preparation for the oncoming storm.

“Get out of my sight before I do something I won’t regret.” Leia growled. Han, knowing when to quit, expertly turned down a nearby corridor. Upon rounding the turn, he was immediately accosted by a group of rookies still curious about how, _exactly_ , he helped blow up the Death Star.

Ah, youth.

As for Leia, she made it to the command center in record time. She keyed in her passcode and the doors slid open to reveal the current leaders of the Rebellion. General Rieekan, General Dodonna, and Mon Mothma.

“This had better be good,” Leia huffed as she took her seat at the large holotable.

Mothma said nothing. She turned on the holotable and sat back as the recorded message projected began to play.

It was a young woman, older than Leia – maybe Han’s age, if she had to guess. She looked tired, with her hair hanging over her face in a way that suggested she hadn’t slept well in a very long time. Despite that, she had a fire in her eyes that begged close attention.

“Listen,” the recorded hologram said, “I’m sending this message on a secure server, so the Empire can’t trace me. Don’t ask how I got your contact information.” She looked offscreen, then returned her gaze to the perceived camera. “I’ve got someone on board who really wants to meet up with the Rebellion.” She took a deep breath through her nose and let it out slowly. “He’s kind of a big name Imperial, so I understand if you don’t want to trust him at first,” She brushed her hair out of her face, and once again the intensity of her recorded gaze left everyone in the room speechless, “But Vader’s not so bad once you get to know him.”

“ _What_ – “ Leia burst out, but Mothma shushed her.

“Now, I know what you’re thinking. ‘Oh, Vader’s evil! Think of all those people he killed!’ And okay, you’re not entirely wrong.” She rolled her eyes. “I mean, he did kill a lot of people. Still can, if he feels like it. But…” She frowned. “He’s changed. And trust me, a guy like that doesn’t change easily.” She paused, as if to gather her bearings. “Anyways, he wants to join the Rebellion. I’ll join too, I guess. We’ll be stationed on Tatooine for the next five standard rotations. Mos Espa. Bring Luke Skywalker.”

With that, she gave a wave to the camera, and the holo winked out.

Everyone was silent for a few moments. Then,

“Are we seriously considering something that is so obviously a prank?” Rieekan snorted.

“This channel’s frequency is only known to us and a few others,” Mothma said quietly, “What kind of prankster could reach our frequency?”

“A really dedicated one.” Rieekan responded.

“I don’t think so.” Dodonna spoke up. “She looked nervous. It could be a trap, for all we know.”

“A trap? The Empire wouldn’t set a trap like this. If they had our contact information, they would just attack.”

“So then what makes you think a simple prankster would be able to get their hands on this frequency?”

“I said a _dedicated_ one could!” 

“So you’re saying the Empire isn’t _dedicated_ enough?”

Mothma sighed, a hand on her chin, as she thought about what she just saw. Her gaze fell to Leia, who had said nothing while Rieekan and Dodonna devolved into bickering younglings. “Leia?”

The princess startled – clearly, she had also been lost in thought. “Yes?”

Mothma gave the young woman a thoughtful frown. “What do you think we should do?”

Mon Mothma was not stupid. She had known, for a very long time, just who Leia Organa really was. The family resemblance was just too much to ignore – her mother’s face, her father’s righteous passion – Leia Organa was a Naberrie-Skywalker, through and through. And because of that, Mothma knew better than most that Leia’s instincts were more in touch with what was best for everyone. Her father had an impressive mastery of the Force, and it was clear to Mothma that such power had been granted to his daughter, as well.

Now, none of this was sanctioned by fact. She had never asked the Organas who Leia’s real parents were, nor did she understand why Leia had been adopted in the first place. Yes, Anakin and Padmé had both died at the beginning of the Empire, but what of Padmé’s extended family? Surely she could have been raised just as well on Naboo.

And yet, even though there was no solid proof, Mothma knew. She had been a Senator for a long time – she knew what to look for in these kinds of things.

And so, she trusted Leia’s judgment above all else.

The woman in question, however, just looked stumped. “I… I don’t know.”

Well, Mothma couldn’t very well run an entire Rebellion based off of the initial judgment of one woman, no matter how powerful her connection to the Force.

“That’s all right,” She said quietly. “We’ll just have to take extra precautions.”

“What?” Rieekan spluttered. “You’re actually considering this?”

Mothma nodded. “Of course. After all, a chance to bring in Vader, no matter how unlikely, is worth it.” She turned to Leia and placed a soft but strong hand on her shoulder. “Let Luke know that we’re sending him on a mission.” She tilted her head, as if a new thought occurred to her. Then she added, “And get yourself ready, as well.”

“Huh?” Leia tilted her head. “Why?”

“I think it will be good for both of you. You can bring that Han along as well, if you need to.” Mothma smiled. She saw the princess and the smuggler often enough to know that what was shown to the rest of the Rebellion wasn’t necessarily the truth.

Leia blushed, but hid it with a roll of her eyes. “All right, fine. We’ll bring him along, too.”

Mothma smiled. “Good. You leave as soon as possible. Tatooine is a far ride from here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think? I really need to get writing, you're catching up to where I've hit a small block :o   
> Thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin has a low-key panic attack and makes a big mistake. Luke and Leia don't notice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At long last, the meeting between Anakin and his children... will it be what you thought it was? :3

“It’s been four rotations.” Anakin said quietly into his drink. “Do you think they…?”

“Maybe try asking the Force instead of me,” Ahsoka replied drily. “I can’t just _give_ you all the answers.”

“But didn’t you say were are part of the Force?” Anakin picked his head up, a nervous, if teasing glint in his eye.

“You know what I mean.” Ahsoka smiled back at him. Anakin took a sip of his drink again, wincing at the bitter taste (a new concept for him).

He looked at the brown liquid in his cup for a moment, then sighed.

“I can’t tell him.” Anakin said. “Not… at first.” He looked up at his friend’s ghost. “Can I?”

Ahsoka shrugged. “Do what you want. I’m not the one it affects.”

Anakin huffed into his cup. “Curse you for giving me agency over my own life.”

Ahsoka raised a brow. “You did it all on your own. I’m just moral support, remember?”

“Yeah, thanks for that,” Anakin deadpanned, “I have so much freedom, I don’t know what to do with myself.”

“I hear underwater basket weaving has become popular amongst the elderly. Gives them a nice challenge.”

“I’m forty! That’s not so old!”

“From a certain point of view, that is.”

“Enough screwing round, I have to think about this.”

“So that means I win, right?”

“Ahsoka.”

“… Sorry.”

He sighed and shook his head. “He’s my son. But can you imagine his reaction to finding out his father is – well – _me_?”

Ahsoka shook her head sadly. “You haven’t really met him yet. He… well, he’s a lot like his mother.”

The ex-Sith looked up with a careful hope glimmering in his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“You’ll have to figure that one out on your own,” Ahsoka shrugged. “He’s your kid. It’s your job to get to know him.”

“I know,” Anakin said sheepishly, “But a head start couldn’t hurt.”

The Togrutan ghost just shook her head. “Not this time, Skyguy.”

With a sigh, Anakin took another sip from his cup. Meeting his son would be difficult enough. But he really didn’t know how to bring up the topic of his parentage. It seemed so difficult, or awkward, and he was sure in the end he’d chicken out and just put off telling Luke until later… thoughts swirled around his mind haphazardly, each one with a new scenario where everything goes wrong in a thousand different ways. His hands clenched around the cup tightly, and just as he heard a crack in the sturdy ceramic, the Force suddenly… changed.

“That’s my cue!” Ahsoka grinned. “It would be hard to explain if they saw me with you, so you’re on your own here.” She waved at her old master, who sputtered in confusion, before she disappeared.

“Don’t forget,” her voice whispered, “You’ve got Aphra in the sky if meeting your kids prove too difficult for you to handle.”

“Wait,” Anakin said, “ _Kids_?”

* * *

“I’m coming with you,” Leia said as they docked in the Mos Espa spaceport. “I don’t want you meeting with Vader alone.”

“It still could be a prank,” Luke said, but it was clear to both of them that it really wasn’t.

Luke was nervous.

Obi-Wan hadn’t said anything about this meeting. They had talked relatively regularly for the past few months, but up until a few weeks ago it felt as if he had taken a step back from being a supportive and encouraging mentor to a curious (and perhaps nervous?) spectator. Luke knew something monumental had changed in the Force recently – his frequently interrupted sleep and the strange warm buzz that filled his body with every waking moment was clue enough. But Obi-Wan’s recalcitrance to speak to him was even more obvious.

Whatever happened in that spaceport would be a big game-changer.

“I’m coming with you,” Leia insisted again, harder this time, and Luke had no choice but to relent.

“Fine, but keep your blaster close.” Luke tucked his lightsaber in to his belt and his blaster into his holster on the other side.

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” Luke looked over to Leia. He winced. She was hiding a sharp vibroknife in her boot. Another lay on the table beside her.

“You should get going. The rotation is almost up.” Han entered the equipment storage area and leaned against one of the seats. “Wouldn’t want to waste his time.” He said this with the barest hint of a sneer.

“Oh, don’t worry. We were just leaving,” Leia responded quickly, none too kindly.

Luke said nothing, but watched the two with interest.

He wouldn’t be quick to say they were head over heels for each other, but… that animosity that spawned between the princess and the smuggler never had any real starting point. It was as if they hated each other the moment they met.

And yet… the Force was strong between them. Interesting.

Leia and Luke left not long after that – Leia was still fuming when they walked off the exit ramp.

“Be careful,” Luke said, “There’s enough hot air here as is.”

Leia shot him a glare that he only smiled at. “Fine. Do we know where we’re meeting him?”

Luke shook his head. “I have a feeling that he assumed I would know how to pick him out from the crowd through the Force. He didn’t need to tell us his exact location.”

“Well?” Leia asked, her hands crossed over her chest. “Can you tell?”

Luke closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He extended his senses, looking for that cold, dark sun that he’d felt on the Death Star not too long ago – and goodness, how could one go from that source of pure apathy and rage and decide to fight for good? – and frowned.

He could feel nearby Force presences. Leia, for example, shining strong and bright in the Force (thought she was mostly untrained, only with a few basic shielding techniques up her sleeve, she said). The ebb and flow of the passerby in the spaceport. It was almost soothing, if he didn’t stop to think about the specific Force presence he was supposed to be looking for. He felt a vaguely familiar presence, almost ethereal, but he couldn’t pinpoint its exact location. It felt like long, hot days outside the Homestead, with a faceless voice telling him _Good, Luke, you’re just like your father_ - 

And nearby was another powerful presence. Stronger than him, stronger than Leia, but quiet and unseen.

It was coming from the cantina not far from them.

_No way,_ he thought. Vader’s presence had been – well – definitely not _this_.

It was… _warm_. It still had a chill to it, as if there was a stiff breeze on a hot day, but altogether was definitely not the cold black sun he had remembered.

“I know where he is,” Luke said, and grabbed Leia’s arm. “I – I can’t believe it.”

“Can’t believe what?” Leia asked, but Luke didn’t answer.

Luke followed the source of the strange, warm-but-cold Force presence until he was inside the Cantina. Then he froze up.

“Luke? What’s wrong?”

“It’s Vader. He’s here.” Luke licked his chapped lips and eyed the cantina nervously. “But he’s different, and I don’t know what that means.”

He scanned the dingy cantina, but he didn’t see the hulking mass of Sith Lord anywhere. However, his eyes fell to an older man nursing a cup of – it looked like caf, which was odd. You didn’t drink caf in a cantina, especially not a cantina on Tatooine.

The Force presence Luke had been searching for gently pulsed from the man – it felt as if it was reaching toward him. Luke gulped and squeezed Leia’s hand tight. The man visibly stiffened, and the Force presence Luke felt retreated back.

“Come on.” He led her to the table.

The man (it was Vader, somehow Luke knew it, even without the suit) took a sip of caf, then placed it on the table. He did not turn to look at Luke and Leia – instead, he gestured to the seats before him. “Please, sit.”

Leia let go of Luke’s hand and crossed her arms over her chest. She was the one who would be doing the talking, because Luke was too busy being confused about _everything ever_.

His voice sounded… human enough, but there was an edge to it that still sounded robotic. Where was his vocoder? Was that deep, booming baritone on the Death Star not his real voice? Why was he not wearing his suit?

“Why did you have someone else contact us?” Leia demanded.

“You certainly wouldn’t have believed me had I done it myself.” Vader still did not look at them. It seemed almost as if he was trying _not_ to look at them. “But Luke… is strong in the Force. I knew he’d recognize me.”

“Barely,” Leia intoned. “He’s the only reason I think you might actually be telling the truth.”

Vader was quiet for a second. Then, “Better than nothing, I guess.”

Leia was taken aback for a moment. Just barely, though, and she quickly had her composure back. “So what do you want?”

“Just like Aphra said,” Vader shrugged, “I wish to join the Rebellion.”

Leia’s brow raised. “Why?”

“It has come to my recent attention that there is something in the Rebellion worth protecting.” Vader sipped from his mug. “If you would be so kind as to sit down – people are starting to stare.” The hand holding his cup gestured around the cantina, and he was right. Nervous eyes watched Luke and Leia like hungry mynocks.

Begrudgingly, Leia nudged Luke toward a pair of seats opposite the Dark Lord.

Vader finally turned his head up to look at the two.

If Leia knew any better, she’d say he looked like he’d seen a ghost.

His lips parted, his brows turned up, and his eyes held the look of someone who had lost everything.

The moment passed. Vader cleared his throat (and winced, Leia noticed) and blinked. “Here are my conditions.”

“Conditions?” Leia scoffed. “We’re still toying with the thought of you actually turning your back on Palpatine.”

“His name is Sidious, you know.” Vader said casually. “Palpatine is just a mask. The real demon is much worse.”

“I already know what Palpatine is like. I don’t need insider gossip from his best friend.” Leia rolled her eyes.

“If that’s what you think I was to him, then you don’t know anything at all.” Vader smiled, but it wasn’t happy.

Luke, who was slowly getting the hang of things, thought it looked very sad.

“What are your conditions?” He asked. He shot Leia a quiet look that said _please be sensitive to the situation at hand_.

And oddly enough, she got it.

Vader’s attention turned to Luke. “I will either be by your or Princess Organa’s side at all times.”

“I don’t know what you think I’m princess of, Vader,” Leia sneered, “But with the destruction of my planet, I have no people to govern.”

“I’m sorry,” Vader said. “I didn’t know that Tarkin had planned on that from the start.” He sighed, and the two swore they could hear his vocoder – wherever it was – crackle. “I never wanted to use that _blight_ on anything.” He looked up to her again, and again she saw that infinite sadness in his eyes. “To me, you will always be royalty.”

“Much good that does.” Leia said, not unkindly. “An apology doesn’t quite revive my people.”

Vader shook his head. “No, it doesn’t.” He blinked slowly, as if taking in her appearance. “But my request still stands.”

“Is that it?” Luke tilted his head. “You just want to be around Leia or me?” He frowned. “I thought you’d want to be a General or something.”

Vader smiled again, this time it was… nostalgic. “Been there, done that. Titles don’t mean much to me anymore.”

“Okay, _Darth Vader_.” Leia scoffed. Vader shook his head.

“No, that’s not my name.” He swallowed. “I rejected the Sith when I left.”

“All right.” Leia raised a brow. “What is your name, then?”

* * *

 

Anakin panicked. He hadn’t quite thought this through. Should he come clean? But if he did, would they ever trust him? He came here to protect his son (and daughter, now, and he would have _words_ with Ahsoka when this was over), but if he told them the truth, would they even want to be near him? Would it not be better to have them see him as a stranger? Would they ever accept him as their father? Certainly it would be less painful to know them as a stranger, rather than a parent living on borrowed time.

“Hello?” Leia waved her hand at him. “I didn’t think this was a question that needed much thought.” Her eyes narrowed. “Unless you’re trying to hide something from us.”

“No,” Anakin said quickly, “It’s not that. You just… remind me very much of someone I once knew.” He then smiled nervously. “My name is Cin. Cin Vhetin.” 

What planet are you from?” Leia narrowed her eyes. “I’m not familiar with that name.”

Anakin waved a hand airily.  “Some Outer Rim garbage heap. I didn’t live there long, but it’s where I was born.”

He chanced a glance at Luke. The boy was watching him with keen interest. Anakin knew enough Mando’a from his clone troopers so many years ago, and he knew that language wasn’t very well known outside of Mandalorian warriors, but he also knew that Boba Fett was frequently on Tatooine. He spoke fluent Mando’a – Anakin suddenly worried that perhaps Luke knew what his name meant.

Luke blinked at him, then turned to Leia. “I’ve heard that language before – or, something like it.” He shrugged. “It probably is an Outer Rim thing.”

“ _Probably_ isn’t really good enough,” Leia said drily. “If you want to join us, with your track record? We need a little more than your word.”

Anakin twisted in his seat to grab something. Luke leaned forward, his gaze tense, while Leia’s hand flew to a blaster at her side, ready to fire at a moment’s notice.

Anakin dropped his lightsaber on the table before them.

“I think you both know what this is,” he said.

“So?” Leia raised a brow. “You don’t need a lightsaber to invite devastation.”

He shook his head. “No, I don’t need it,” he shrugged, “But it’s still important to me. Or, it was.” He took a deep breath. “I don’t want this any more.”

Luke frowned. “Then you will be without a weapon.”

Anakin shook his head. “Not for long. I would like to take you to Ilum, where we can find new ones. Red doesn’t quite suit me anymore.”

“We’re not going to help you build another lightsaber,” Leia sniped. “You can keep your old one if you want a weapon so bad.”

Anakin smiled. “I don’t need a new weapon at this exact moment. I’m hoping that one day you will trust me enough to let Luke and myself go to Ilum. As far as I know, Luke has a lightsaber already – albeit, one that isn’t his.”

He didn’t really mind that Luke had his old lightsaber, but the memories ingrained into it were burdens his son didn’t deserve to bear.

“It was my father’s,” Luke said indignantly. Then, softer, “You killed him.”

Anakin felt a pang of hurt rush through his heart. Was that really what Obi-Wan had told him? He sighed. “I killed many fathers.” He looked away. “I know I cannot undo the wrongs I have done. But I hope to prevent others from making the same mistakes.” He turned to Luke.

“You think I –“ Luke spluttered under Anakin’s gaze. “I could – do the things _you’ve_ done?”

Anakin smiled sadly. “There was a time in my life where I never thought I would do the things I’ve done. The Sith prey on your feelings. You’d do best to remember that.”

Luke nodded slowly, his eyes narrowed. “I will.”

Anakin nodded towards Leia. With a gentle Force push, his lightsaber rolled toward her. “Keep it.”

“I don’t want it.” Leia placed one hand on it to stop its rolling. “I won’t use it, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to.” Anakin sipped from his mug one last time, then placed the cup gently on the table. “You can if you want, but I’m giving it to you as a sign of trust.” He started to stand. “Now, if you don’t mind – my associate and I must be going. Please consider my requests.” He gave them the contact information necessary to reach him, then left the cantina.

Luke and Leia could say nothing as he slowly walked away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cin Vhetin means "Clean Slate" in Mando'a. I spent a long time thinking of the name he'd pick, and I think that he picked up a lot of Mando'a with his clone troopers when he was a Jedi General. 
> 
> Also this is what I thought of while writing this -   
> Anakin on the outside: *sips tea*   
> Anakin on the inside: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH
> 
> Thanks for reading ~ let me know what you think!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of Anakin's panic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suppose that last chapter wasn't everything you expected it to be eue  
> Don't worry, I'm certain that is a secret that won't be kept for long. But for now, he's got a big secret, and Aphra thinks it's hilarious.

Anakin leaned heavily against the building as soon as he stepped outside.

“Oh Force.” He wiped a hand across his brow. “I don’t know how I’m going to keep this up forever.”

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic,” Ahsoka called, “I’m betting this whole farce will fall apart in a week tops.” She laughed, and her voice echoed in Anakin’s mind. “ _Cin Vhetin?_ You’re lucky Luke didn’t catch on immediately.”

Anakin huffed as he opened his comm. “Aphra, please come and get me.”

“Sure thing, boss.” Aphra grinned. “Never thought you’d ask so politely. Oh, my heart.”

She hung up before he could say anything in response.

“So why did you cut the meeting short?” Ahsoka asked. Anakin paled – which was saying something for someone as pale as he.

“I panicked. I didn’t really have a plan besides ‘hope Luke was feeling generous’ and later ‘give Leia my lightsaber’ and after that I didn’t know what to do.” He pushed himself off the wall of the cantina, wiped his brow again, and set off to the appointed meeting spot.

* * *

“You _panicked_?” Aphra was hiding a smile.

“Shut up,” Anakin brushed past her and into the storage area. “I just learned they were twins. _Twins_!” He shook his head in exasperation. “My daughter’s been living under my respirator for years and I never figured it out on my own.” He shook his head. “I can’t believe it.”

“That’s Leia Organa, right?” Aphra asked, her head tilted. At Anakin’s tired nod, she shrugged. “I mean, once you think about it, the resemblance is uncanny.”

“She’s not wrong,” Ahsoka chuckled, “Leia was always more rambunctious than her brother.”

“Great.” Anakin grumbled. “But everyone seems to forget that I – I did something horrible to her.”

“You did horrible things to lots of people,” Aphra said offhandedly. “One such person who happened to be your daughter. These things happen.”

Anakin just stared at her.

“You’ll find a way to make it up to Leia eventually,” Ahsoka said quietly. “And even if you don’t, there’s nothing you can do to change the past. You just have to look forward.”

He sighed. “Aphra, if the Rebellion contacts you, let me know. I’ll speak with them.”

Her commlink beeped. She looked down at it. “Hey, Anakin.”

“Yes?”

“The Rebellion is contacting me.”

“What?” He straightened up, shocked. “Already?” He blanched. It had been less than a standard rotation! He thought they’d be bickering about this for at least two more!

“Hey, don’t choke the messenger.” Aphra fiddled with her controls and a projection appeared above her commlink. “We’ll have contact in five seconds. Make sure you look pretty.”

He had no time to respond. He plastered a thin smile on his face as the channel opened and he was greeted with Mon Mothma’s equally uncomfortable expression.

“Cin.” She nodded – a sign of good faith. Anakin swallowed heavily as he nodded back.

“General Mothma.” He conceded. She shook her head with a tight smile.

“It’s just Mothma. Mon Mothma.”

Anakin held back a wince. Already screwing up. For just a single second, he wished for the emotionless bars of his mask. “My apologies. I don’t quite understand the nuance of your… hierarchy.”

“Perhaps you will understand in due time.” Mothma said carefully. “We’re willing to take this risk. You could be very useful to us.”

“I could,” he agreed, “But I do have some stipulations. I believe your agents reported back to you my requirements?”

Mothma nodded. Her eyes narrowed. “You want to be their bodyguard.”

Anakin saw Aphra snort out of the corner of his eye. He inhaled deeply, imagined snapping her neck, then let it go. Aphra would be Aphra. He had to learn to deal with her.

“Yes. It appears to me that they are both very important to the Rebellion, and in turn, important to the Galaxy itself. I wish to protect them, and if they allow me, to train them in the ways of the Force.”

Mothma looked coolly surprised. “Not the way of the Sith, I’d assume.”

“Never.” Anakin said this almost harshly. “The way of the Sith cost me more than my life. I would never wish that upon these children.” He kept eye contact with Mothma, hoping she could feel his sincerity.

It appeared that she could. Her eyes softened, if only a tick. “Why do they mean so much to you?”

Anakin froze. He looked towards Aphra, but she was no help. Her grin was threatening to split her face in two.

“Just be honest.” Ahsoka’s voice sounded tired.

“They are the children of Anakin Skywalker.” He said at last. Mothma nodded, surprise only showing in the slightest tilt of her brow. “I believe that means something.”

“I do, too.” She said quietly. “I always thought… are you sure?”

“As sure as the Force itself.” His smile was wry. “Does anyone else know?”

“No,” Mothma said quickly, “I only ever suspected.”

He grinned. “Well, now you know the truth.”

She smiled as well. “I suppose I do.”

Anakin thought that maybe this wouldn’t be so bad.

"Very well," Mothma spoke up, "I will send you the coordinates to a meeting place." She gave him the coordinates, set up the date they would meet, then disconnected. Anakin exhaled deeply as soon as she hung up. 

“I told you to tell the _truth_ ,” Ahsoka griped.

“I did… from a certain point of view.” Anakin grinned.

Somewhere far away, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s ghost sneezed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think~


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin joins the Rebellion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Hope that last chapter was fun for you all - these next few chapters are all smooth sailings, but it won't stay that way for long.. :3

The Rebellion was, surprisingly enough, not that difficult to find. Once Mothma gave him the coordinates, Aphra was able to find their base of operations very quickly.

Unsurprisingly enough, however, were the reactions to the fact that Darth Vader had for some reason decided to throw in his lot with the Rebellion.

The most common emotion to be had was anger.

As soon as the Arc Angel had touched down on Home One’s flight deck, there were about twenty various rebels who were standing at the ready with guns drawn. The hatch opened, Vader walked out, and he could feel the hatred emanating off of these poor souls. It was to be expected, though – he had done some terrible things. Some of those things he didn’t particularly care about (killing people, using the Force in ways some may consider “inappropriate”, being a Sith Lord), but he knew that there had been things he did that he never truly agreed with. His Master had told him to subjugate and enslave other people, and he had done so without question.

It made him sick to think about.

But as he stepped out of the hatch, and into the view of the Rebels, the palpable hate he had felt morphed into something different. It mixed with a strange combination of shock, pity, and disbelief.

He was a weak-looking man. Gone was the terrifying visage of darkness. Gone was the harsh breathing that had tortured him every day of his life. Gone was the extra foot or so of height that had been so haphazardly grafted into him.

What remained was a pale, tired-looking old man. And to be honest, he wasn’t even that old – but the years stuck in that suit had aged him considerably.

“Where’s Vader?” One rebel asked cautiously.

“Right in front of you,” Mothma said. She didn’t have to push her way through the crowd of rebels; they seemed to part before her as if she commanded it with the Force. “And as you can see, he no longer responds to that name.”

Anakin bit his lip. He had been too busy thinking to respond to the name ‘Vader’, but he was certain he would have instinctively done _something_ had he not been preoccupied thinking about how _difficult_ this whole thing was going to be.

“I’m not here to steal your secrets or kill your people,” he said softly. The rebels leaned in to hear him – they were not used to such a horrible man speaking in such a quiet tone. “I am here to protect Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa.”

“Those are our two most influential rebels!” One yelled. “Like hell we’d let you near them!”

“So he’s here?” Luke’s voice rang through the hangar. “Oh, Mothma, why didn’t you tell me?”

Mothma sighed. “As you can see, things are a bit hectic right now, Commander.”

The boy walked over to her, and the crowd parted similarly for him.

Anakin had a hard time not staring at his son. He tried to keep his gaze cool and neutral as he watched the twenty-or-so unnamed rebels who had started to put their blasters down, and the two people who didn’t actively want him dead.

“Well, uh, welcome to Home One. It’ll be your home for the next few years, probably.” Luke said with a half-strained smile. He turned to the gathered forces and spread his arms out peacefully. “Everyone, this is Cin Vhetin – formerly known as Darth Vader. You will see him around often, because he has defected from the Empire.”

Anakin shrugged at that. If anything, he was simply waiting for the right moment to take it from his old Master’s grasp. That way, he could give the Empire to his own children, to do with as they will. But, he supposed, ‘defecting’ was a rather apt description for his actions. He no longer wanted a part in its corruption of the galaxy. The Republic hadn't been any better, but perhaps his children would find a way to fix it. 

One might say he had too much faith in his children. He would never admit that, though. 

“He has been granted temporary amnesty for the duration of the war. Until this galaxy is free of the Empire, he will not be jailed.” Mothma added. “That is to say, as long as he fights the Empire, he will not be tried for his crimes.”

Anakin could _feel_ Ahsoka’s amusement from that. Perhaps she’d have something to say about that later, but clearly she didn’t feel like manifesting herself in front of his son, as she had mentioned before.

He stepped down off the ramp and smiled when the rebel soldiers immediately pointed their blasters at him again. He stood beside Luke, his hands spread out as well. “I cannot harm you like this,” he said with a tight smile. He was lying – it would be more than easy enough to kill everyone in this room – but he figured he would try not leading with fear for once.

He had done so at one time, long ago. Perhaps he could do it again.

“Bantha fodder.” Came Aphra’s voice, and the blasters were now all trained on her as she stood at the foot of the ramp. “Cin’s still dangerous, but not to you guys.” She walked off the ramp nonchalantly and stood next to Anakin. “Just point him and shoot. The Empire’ll be gone in a week tops.”

“I’d prefer to take a more passive role.” Anakin said sternly. “I wish to protect Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa from harm. They are the Empire’s most wanted.”

“You are too, you know.” Aphra raised a brow. “Or did you miss that Imperial transmission?” She rubbed at the skin of her throat and fixed him with a knowing glance.

“I think Leia and I know how to take care of ourselves,” Luke said calmly, “I think you could be a lot more use to us actively fighting the Empire.”

“You don’t know the Emperor like I do, young one.” Anakin responded. “He is what made me Darth Vader.” He paused, then smiled. “I once was a lot like you, you know.”

Luke tried to smile back, but it looked more like a grimace. “I see.”

Anakin cleared his throat. He had a point to make. “What I mean is, Sidious knows you and Leia are capable adults. He knows your desires and history.” He blinked. “He knew your parents.”

Luke’s shoulders went stiff at that. He caught Anakin in an intense stare, searching for something. Then, “We should probably take this to a more private area.”

Mothma nodded. She waved a hand, and all the rebellion troopers cautiously shuffled out of the hangar. Some looked back curiously, some kept their gaze locked on Anakin, and still some simply walked away with their heads down.

* * *

Mothma led them all to a small room just down the hall from the hangar. There was a small table with enough seats for the four of them. Anakin, Aphra, and Mothma took their seats, but Luke remained standing. He watched Anakin carefully.

“Does that mean you know who they were?”

Anakin sighed. “Yes.”

“At the cantina you said you couldn’t remember.”

“Not true,” Anakin said, “I said I had killed many fathers. I never specified which ones.”

Luke frowned. “Was that supposed to be a joke?”

Anakin tried his best not to show much emotion to that response. He didn’t know what to say – he panicked and said the wrong thing and now everything was falling apart.

Again.

“Um,” he tried again, “I apologize for my – dark humor.” He took a steadying breath. “When you’ve lived as I have for so long, your grasp of socially acceptable humor kind of rots away.” He had to restrain himself from adding “ _like my actual body_ ,” because that certainly would have made things worse.

Luke nodded, then sat down. He did not take his gaze off of Anakin. “So, what was he like?”

Anakin froze. “What?”

“My father,” Luke prompted, “What was he like?”

“He…” Anakin didn’t know what to say.

He wouldn’t kid himself – Luke (and Leia) would eventually find out who he really was. When they did, he didn’t want them to think he had done this to hurt them. He didn’t want them to think – he didn’t know what he wanted from them. He didn’t even really understand why he had decided to keep his identity secret in the first place.   
But he had, and he was going to stick to it, by the will of the Force.

“He was a very dedicated man,” he said quietly. “He loved your mother more than anything in the galaxy.” He smiled. “He was rash, brave, and always rushing into danger without thinking critically. But everything he did, he did for her.”

Luke nodded, satisfied with this new information. “And my mother?”

Oh dear.

Anakin breathed deeply through his nose, then released his breath through his mouth. This would be difficult.

“Your mother was the most wonderful woman I have ever met. She was smart, caring, and always inspiring those around her to be better. She was a Senator, you know. Used to be the Queen of Naboo.”

Luke’s eyes widened. “A queen? I’m the son of a queen?”

“And a Jedi,” Anakin said with a sly grin. “That wasn’t exactly something Jedi were allowed to have.”

The boy’s eyes widened further. “What does that mean?”

Anakin tilted his head. Had neither Obi-Wan nor Ahsoka told him about the Jedi rule of attachment? They were training him to be a Jedi, weren’t they? “The Jedi were forbidden from having extraneous attachments. Any attachments, really. Your father and mother had been secretly married – had the Jedi order found out, your father would have been expelled. Your mother probably would have lost her seat at the Senate.”

Luke balked. “I would have ruined their lives!”

Anakin chuckled. “No, not at all.” He shook his head. “A parent’s love for their child knows no bounds. They would have done anything for you.” He looked at Mothma, who nodded. “You and your sister.”

Luke’s jaw should have hit the desk at that point. Instead, a neatly-stacked pile of holopads on the desk simply crashed to the floor with more than enough force to crack at least one of them.

“Luke!” Mothma admonished.

“I have a _sister_?” He shook his head. “No way. Did she…”

Anakin did not smile. He really didn’t. Honest.

“She most certainly survived. You can ask her herself how she’s doing. I’m sure she’d take time out of her day to talk. After all, you’re already friends.”

Luke narrowed his eyes. “Leia?”

Anakin nodded. “Something tells me you already knew.”

Luke frowned. “I guess… I’ve always known. In a way.” He laughed nervously, his smile a little too wide. “Does she know?”

Anakin shook his head. “No, she doesn’t.” He was sure that statement wouldn’t be true for much longer. “But I think we’ve gotten off-topic. We came in here to discuss things other than your parents.”

Aphra rolled her eyes and kicked her feet up onto the desk. "Finally. We came here to discuss actual politics, not reminisce about the dead." 

Luke looked down, slightly embarrassed. Anakin gave Aphra a sharp glare, then smiled at Luke. “There will be plenty of time for me to regale you with tales of your father later.” He turned his attention to Mothma, and cleared his throat. “Now, what do you want to know?”

Mothma smiled thinly. She sat up straight and with a gleam in her eyes, she spoke calmly.

“Everything.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!! Thank you for reading!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things happen. What's up with Sidious?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo! Thank you all very much for your great comments, they're really making me think. That's always awesome!!

Cin talked for a long time after that. He gave away various important details of the Empire, all the dirty secrets Palpatine had been keeping from his people, everything they could have wished to know. It was, in all, extremely informative.

Despite it all though, Luke just wished he could go and find Leia. She hadn’t wanted to meet Cin when he arrived, and she didn’t want to talk to him for any longer than necessary. Luke knew why, but he wished that she had been there to hear about their parents.

 _Their parents_.

Luke had a _sister_.

Cin wrapped up his speech about a forever after he started talking. Luke was the first one to leave. He had asked permission, of course, but he could hardly contain his impatience when taking his leave.

As soon as he ditched the office he broke into a run across the base. He could feel her presence – he always had been able to, but now that he knew about their connection it felt as if it was just that much more obvious. He barreled through other soldiers and droids, and left quite a few confused and annoyed rebels in his wake, but he felt like it was physically impossible to contain his excitement any longer than he already had.

Although he didn’t know this, many people experienced it – as he ran by, datapads and comlinks shorted out for the barest hint of a second. His excitement was, oddly enough, not contained to his body. Without knowing it, he sent the Force into a frenzy with his own emotion.

He knew he was closing in on Leia, and he was sure he’d see her when he turned the corner. He inhaled deeply and made the sharp turn to find –

“Ah! Oh, Force, what the hell are you two doing?”

“Luke!”

“You coulda knocked first.”

“You’re in the middle of a hallway, guys! Gross!”

Han pulled away from Leia and gave him a cocky grin. “Nobody comes down this hallway anyways.”

Leia scoffed and pushed Han away from herself. “I don’t know why I keep doing this.”

Luke rolled his eyed at Leia. They both knew why she kept doing it.

Han cleared his throat. “Okay, well, since you interrupted us, you had a pretty good reason, right?”

Luke blanched. He wanted to tell Leia, but… this was kind of a private thing. Between siblings.

Oh, Luke grinned at the thought.

“I need to tell Leia something, and if she wants she can tell you later.” He smiled innocently at his friend, who clearly didn’t like being kept out of the loop.

“Oh, so you can tell her secrets but not me? No, I get it. Fine. Leia, let me know when you want to pick up where we left off.” Han waggled his brows at her as he walked backwards out of the hall. Ever the suave man, he ran into a small pile of boxes and tripped over himself. He quickly recovered, and was out of there before Leia or Luke could say a word.

They both burst out laughing at him for it, though.

Luke shook his head and grinned. “He’s an idiot.”

Leia nodded. “Yeah.” She turned to him and crossed her arms over her chest. “So, you want to tell me something?”

“Yes.” Luke paused. Should he do this? Would this change their friendship in any way?

He figured he would be fine with that, no matter what. She deserved to know the truth. “What do you remember of your mother – your birth mother?”

Leia tilted her head, clearly surprised. “Hmm. Well, not much… images, mostly. All I remember… is that she was very sad.”

Luke frowned. He never knew that. He supposed they could talk more about that later, though. “Do you know who she was?”

Leia nodded. “Padmé Amidala. I was told that I shouldn’t exactly be forthcoming with that information, though.” She narrowed her eyes. “So you’ve got a big secret to keep.”  
Luke laughed. He couldn’t help it. He let out a full belly laugh – the whole hallway reverberated with the sound of his amusement.

“What?” Leia sounded offended. “Was that not good enough?”

“No, no,” Luke tried so hard to speak through his laughter, “It’s not that – it’s, oh Force.” He took a deep breath and wiped his face. “It’s just – my mother is Padmé Amidala, too.”

Leia stood there in total silence for an entire three seconds. Then, “What the hell? And you didn’t tell me?!”

Luke shook his head. “No, no, it’s not that! I just found out today. My father was Anakin Skywalker, and my mother… was a Queen. So I guess that makes me a prince, right?”

Leia rolled her eyes. “The Queens of Naboo are elected. She wasn’t a Queen when she died, she was a senator.”

“Still, that makes me some kind of royalty, right?” Luke chuckled. “Luke Skywalker, farm boy turned prince. Doesn’t that make for some kind of neat kid’s story?”

Leia let out a soft laugh. “I guess it does. You’re still not a prince, though.”

“If you’re a princess, that makes me a prince. We’re siblings. That’s how that works.”

Leia rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine. You can be a prince if you want.”

“Sweet.”

Leia shook her head, amused. “Of _course_ you’re my brother. I can’t believe I didn’t see it sooner.”

Luke grinned and slapped a hand on her back. “Well, now we know. The only two Force sensitive kids on base are related. What a shock, right?”

“I’m sure Wedge will be upset to find out that the wedding he planned for us is never going to happen.” Leia smirked.

They both fell into laughter once more.

* * *

There was an incessant beeping that kept ringing in Anakin’s ears. He opened one bleary eye and was immediately confronted with a bright flashing light.

It was his commlink.

He sat up in his Rebellion-issued cot and turned it on. “Yes?”

It was Leia’s cold voice that greeted him. “We have a mission for you.”

Anakin sat up quickly and reached out through the Force for his clothes. “Where do I go?”

He pretended not to notice the way she rolled her eyes at him. “The command center, obviously.” She moved to close the call. “Be there in five minutes.” Then she hung up.

Very well. He quickly put on his clothes and put a comm through to Aphra. It rang for a few moments, then the doctor’s tired face greeted him.

“What do you want?” She griped.

“I’ve got a mission. I wanted to let you know.”

Aphra nodded slowly. “Okay, cool. I’m going back to sleep.”

“Do you have any plans while I’m gone?” He blurted. He didn’t know why, but he wanted to know she’d be okay.

“Huh?” Aphra snorted. “Not really. I might meet up with their code monkeys and see how out of date their tech is.”

He nodded. “Oh, all right. Good. Good bye.” He hung up on her before she could say anything else. He slipped his boots on and exited his room.

The walk to the command center was quiet – it was still early in the morning, and not many people were awake yet. It had only been a few days since he officially joined the Rebellion, and so far only a few people had actively tried to take his life.

Whenever he was faced with the business end of a blaster or vibroblade, he simply swatted the offending object away with the Force. He would let the higher-ups deal with insurrection due to his appearance.

He got nervous looks from everyone he passed. They knew that he had total control of a power only the best of them could ever hope to grasp at. Well, that’s at least what they thought.

The Force was… different for him now. He didn’t exactly use the Dark side, but he never really thought he was using the Light side, either. Still, he knew when he was using the Dark – it burned in his blood and made him see red; it razed through his brain and left an agonizing trail of need in its wake. When he used the Force, he didn’t call upon the Dark anymore, because he knew that if he started again, he might not be able to go back.

The way he used the Force now… it didn’t hurt. And to use it so effortlessly, to feel its uplifting power, to hear its song in his veins, felt… new. But he wasn’t using the Light side – at least, not how the Jedi had taught him. He didn’t quite understand how it worked, but he knew that he was feeling better than he had… probably ever.

He arrived at the command center just on time. The doors opened in front of him, and he saw Luke, Leia, and Mothma sat around the command center table.

He stepped inside and the doors whooshed shut behind him. He walked to the table, but did not sit down.

“What is my mission?” He tilted his head.

Mothma smiled thinly. “It’s not exactly a mission, persay. Rather, you won’t be leaving this base just yet, but we want you to do something for us.”

Anakin narrowed his eyes. “What can I do for you without leaving the base?”

Mothma turned to Luke and Leia. “Go on.”

The twins looked at each other, then at him. Luke seemed to be bursting with excitement, while Leia seemed… like she always did around him. He wouldn’t blame her for that.

Leia opened her mouth to speak, but Luke cut in before she could even utter a word. “We’re going to record you officially renouncing the Empire!” Leia elbowed him in the side.

Anakin took a step back. “We are, are we?”

Leia nodded. “Yes, we are. We think that with your approval of the Rebellion, more Imperials will decide to defect.”

“Do you think anyone will believe me if I say I’m Darth Vader?” Anakin asked. “I certainly don’t look the part anymore.”

“You’ll have to do the best you can,” Mothma said, “We can’t exactly prove it.”

“Could I help?” Luke asked. “I know his Force presence. If I say it, maybe…”

Mothma smiled. “I appreciate the sentiment, but in this day and age, not many people are willing to trust something as nebulous as the Force. Especially when the Jedi are all but extinct.”

Luke nodded, but a small frown was on his face. “I guess he could say something… only Vader would know?”

Anakin laughed. “Oh, I have plenty of information like that.”

“So,” Leia raised a brow, “are you going to do it?”

He nodded, a grin on his face. “Might as well. When is this thing happening?”

“Right now.” Mothma nodded to Luke, who pressed a button on his commlink. The doors to the command center opened once more, and a group of rebels with holocameras and microphones stumbled in nervously.

“Ah,” Anakin said.

* * *

 

Later that day, almost all viewscreens in the Imperial core worlds shorted out in the middle of whatever recycled propaganda was playing. A man’s face appeared on the screen. He looked… battle-worn, with scars running up and down his face, and a light fuzz of newly-grown hair dusting his scalp.

“Hello,” he said, and everything went quiet.

“My name is Cin Vhetin. But you all know me as Darth Vader.” He looked offscreen, then back to the camera. “For those of you who may have wondered all those years what was under that mask, here you go.” He smiled, but it was not a happy one.

Meanwhile, all Imperial holonews stations were frantic to record this monumental message. Who knew how much they could get for this whole thing?

“To prove I am Darth Vader, I will tell you a secret. Sheev Palpatine, your Emperor, is the Dark Lord of the Sith. I was his apprentice for twenty years after the fall of the Republic. He turned you all against the Jedi, and during the confusion, took his place as leader.”

He smiled again. This time, it felt somewhat feral. “If you don’t believe me, just ask him yourself.”

He cleared his throat. “Now, you can believe I am Darth Vader or you can believe I’m not. But what I want to say is… I have officially defected from the Empire. I now serve the Rebel Alliance as best I can.” His smile turned into a sneer. “And Sidious can come and find me if he dares. I won’t be your slave any more.”

He winked, and the projection cut short. All viewscreens returned to their scheduled programming.

* * *

Sheev Palpatine was, in all honesty, not having the most pleasant of days. His wayward apprentice had finally shown himself, only to make an even bigger mess of things. At that exact moment, he was without a lackey and losing Imperial support fast.

All things considered, he had had better days. But this would not set him back for long. No, he already had a plan in motion from the moment he realized his apprentice was gone. Even before that, perhaps. He always knew his grasp on Vader was tenuous at best, and it was clear the man would be keeping an eye on his children.

Oh, he had known about those children. He never thought Vader would learn – or, if he ever did learn, he’d be so empty that they wouldn’t matter.

Well, a Sith Lord can dream.

What mattered was that he still desired a Skywalker. Perhaps the younger boy… Luke. If he was anything like his father, he would be a valuable asset to own. In the end, losing Vader might have been the best thing to happen to him.

Palpatine stood at the large set of transparisteel viewports that showed the hazy Coruscant skyline. He stood there for a moment, taking in the noise and bustle of the city-planet he owned.

He reached for his commlink and entered in the number of his next plan.

The frequency was picked up in a matter of seconds.

“I told you, my Lord – my replacements would have been a much safer route. Vader was all but useless to you, and look at him now!”

“Cylo,” Palpatine said calmly, “I understand your insistence, but let me speak first.”

That shut the scientist right up.

“Now,” Palpatine continued, “I am in need of your two strongest warriors. The siblings, yes?”

“Either them or Karbin,” Cylo shrugged, “But the siblings are easier to handle.”

“Send them to me,” Palpatine grinned. “I will see to it that their training goes well.”

“Consider it done.” Cylo nodded, then hung up the call.

Palpatine turned away from the viewports and sat at his desk. He would have to plan this carefully.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next week I might not be able to update - my classes are in our mid-terms right now so I'm a little busy QAQ  
> Also, Aphra is now Anakin's third, more annoying kid. It's to make up for canon. Whoops.   
> Let me know what you think! Thank you so much for reading my fic. <3


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke meets someone new. Ahsoka meddles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about last week! And this week has a rather short chapter as well - I do apologize, real life has got me swamped. Thank goodness for voting early, I don't have to worry about that today on top of everything else.   
> I hope you like what I've got this week!

Less than two weeks after Cin joined the Rebellion, there were about ten different ex-Imperial agents that were waiting for an acceptance into the ranks. Most of their reasoning behind defecting was “I don’t want to be on the side against Darth Vader.”

That was… enough, for the time being.

Luke was more than ready to accept all these new recruits. With each one that defected came the knowledge that that was one less Imperial they had to fight.

One such agent caught Luke’s attention almost immediately.

He arrived on the Rebel base a few days after the rest of the Imperial defectors. He had markings that looked eerily similar to Aphra’s tattoos, and Luke wanted to know more.

Luke has instantly taken an interest in the older guy. He was the youngest of the Imperial recruits, and definitely the most handsome.

Shortly after his officially acceptance into the Alliance, Luke caught up with him to have a chat. It was the perfect moment – on the way to the mess hall.

“So,” Luke ran up to the man and smoothed his hair back. “Welcome to the Rebellion. I’m Luke Skywalker.”

The boy smirked. “I know who you are.”

Luke blushed. “Oh, I guess – I guess you do.” He stuck out his hand anyways. “Well, it’s nice to meet you.”

He took Luke’s hand and shook firmly. “Morit Astarte.”

Luke felt like he might melt.

“That’s great!” He smiled brightly. Morit let go of his hand and Luke swore he would never wash it again. “Really, great. So, what made you defect?”

Morit laughed. “I guess it’s obvious I come from the Empire, huh.”

Luke shrugged and tried not to blush too hard. “Well, most of our recruits these days are Imperials. It’s pretty safe to assume.”

Morit smirked at him again and raised a brow. “Well, you know what they say about making assumptions. It was nice to meet you, Luke Skywalker.” He nodded at the young Jedi and walked away.

Luke was left staring after him.

He had it bad. And for an ex-Imperial, too! Oh, Leia would not be happy about that.

He stood there for a few more moments, pondering his situation – he was so involved in his own brain that he didn’t notice Morit turn around and walk back to him.

The hand on his shoulder startled him so much that he grabbed the offending person and flipped around to face him. He had the hand that grabbed him tight in a hold that was ready to send the offender flying at a moment’s notice.

Imagine his surprise to see the cute boy he had just tried to flirt with attached to the hand that just touched him.

He jumped back and blushed deeply. “Oh, sorry, I just – training, you know?”

Morit laughed. “Yeah, I know. Why don’t we eat lunch together?”

Luke looked up at him in shock. “What?”

“Come on, it’s not that weird. I’m sure whatever you’ve got in this caf has to be better than what we had.”

Luke swallowed heavily and nodded. “Sure, uh, I guess. I mean, it’s mostly ration bars, but they aren’t too bad.”

Morit chuckled. “I wonder if Rebel ration bars taste any better than Imperial ones. Come on, let’s find out.” He took a few steps back toward the mess hall. Luke, the situation finally catching up to him, followed.

* * *

“So, tell me about the Rebellion!” Ahsoka could be a really great friend sometimes! But when Anakin wanted to sleep, her bright blue glow at the edge of his cot was really not ideal.

“Good. Talked to more soldiers. Fixed some ships. Spent some time with Luke.”

“Nice, nice… has Mothma said anything about an assignment any time soon?”

“No. She said she’d tell me if anything caught her attention.”

Ahsoka sighed and sat back against the wall. “And Luke doesn’t have any important Jedi mission to go on?”

Anakin tried to bury his face in his pillow. Unless he wanted to not breathe, that was the best option for him. “I guess not. He didn’t mention it when we talked.”

Ahsoka crossed her arms over her chest. “Well of course he wouldn’t tell you. You’re the guy that killed his dad. Wait, are we still sticking to that story?” She said this with a sharp tone – a warning.

“I’ll tell them eventually. But I don’t want them to… feel burdened.” He pulled the thin cover over his face. No luck.

“What a good dad. Keeping secrets from your children. I’m really proud of you.”

“Kriff off and let me go to sleep.”

Ahsoka rolled her eyes. “Fine, but only because you asked me so nicely.” She hopped off of his cot and walked out into the corridor.

Anakin was no help. He was having a hard time digesting all this new… life stuff, so Ahsoka really couldn’t be too mad at him for making some – really bad, granted – mistakes. He was new to the whole ‘being a good person’ thing after twenty years. It would take a few hits and misses to get him back on track.

But clearly he would need some help. And while Ahsoka’s main objective was to remain a bystander, she couldn’t just let this slide entirely by until it totally blew up in their faces at a later date.

She walked to Luke’s quarters (across the way from Leia’s, she noticed) and walked inside without a second thought.

Luke was sitting on his cot with his head in his hands. Ahsoka watched him for a moment, then cleared her throat.

The boy stood up quickly and had his hand on his blaster before she could say anything else. She raised her hands up in the air as a form of surrender, a wry smile on her face. “Can’t hurt me with that, kid.”

Luke lowered his blaster marginally and narrowed his eyes. “Do I know you?”

She feigned hurt. “Do you know me! I trained you when you were like, this tall!” She raised her hand to about her knee. “Don’t you remember your pal Ahsoka?”

Luke’s blaster dropped to the floor. “Ahsoka Tano? But… everyone told me you were dead!”

She shrugged. “Yeah, well, Obi-Wan’s pretty dead too, and I hear he’s been talking with you lately.”

Luke shrugged back. “Not too often anymore. And he never… appeared like _that_.” He gestured to all of her. She pursed her lips and shook her head. Skywalkers and Kenobis. It was just impossible to get them to communicate with one another.

“Obi-Wan was very close to your father. Having… Cin here makes it difficult, emotionally, for him to be around.”

Luke frowned. “I thought that Jedi didn’t have attachments. And that they had to let those kinds of things go.”

She sighed. Had no one taught this boy anything? “It’s not… really like that. Or, it’s not supposed to be.” She sat on his cot, in much the same way she had sat on his father’s not long ago. “Obi-Wan and your father were like brothers. Joined at the hip, almost. Your father was my teacher, you know – but to be honest, they both mentored me.

“Seeing Cin reminds Obi-Wan of a different time. It’s hard to let that go, even for him. He wouldn’t say that in so many words, though, so you’re lucky you’ve got me as your translator.”

Luke took that in for a moment. Ahsoka could see he was thinking about what that meant.

“Obi-Wan always said Anakin had been like a brother to him… but I don’t think I ever really understood what he meant.”

Ahsoka nodded. “I don’t think anyone can, besides them. Obi-Wan pretty much raised Anakin once he was brought to the Jedi. It was… a very unusual situation, as I was told.”

“Wow.” Luke’s eyes were wide. “I didn’t know that.”

The ghost smiled sadly at him. “There’s a lot you don’t know, kid.”

Luke nodded, but it was clear that what Ahsoka had said didn’t hurt him in the slightest. “Perhaps you could teach me? Then I could know more.”

Ahsoka shook her head vigorously. “No. Sorry, but I’m not the one you should be asking that.”

Luke’s brow creased as he thought about what she said. “You mean you want me to ask Cin to teach me? But – you know, he…”

“I can personally vouch for him. He won’t try to turn you to the Dark side.” She smiled. “And if he does, just say no.”

Luke raised a brow. “Uh, okay.” He shrugged. “I might as well ask. Although… wouldn’t it be weird?”

Ahsoka tilted her head. “How so?”

Luke scuffed a foot against the ground. “Asking my father’s killer for help. Wouldn’t that seem like I’m not respecting him?”

Ahsoka sighed quietly and tried not to scream. Oh Ashla, these Skywalkers were going to be the death of her twice over now.

“I can promise you, as someone who knows – _knew_ – Anakin Skywalker, that he would be more than pleased if you were to ask Cin for help.”

For a painful moment, Ahsoka could only watch as Luke debated within himself whether or not to trust her. It felt like an agonizing eternity before he finally said, “All right. I’ll ask.”

“You should probably wait until tomorrow,” she said quickly, “He’s asleep right now.”

Luke looked at her oddly. “It’s the middle of the night cycle. Of course he’s asleep.”

“Oh, right.” She blushed. “Uh, I’m probably keeping you up, aren’t I? Well, get some rest. Training with him will be hard work.”

“Thank you.” Luke smiled. “I look forward to it. I hope we can talk more, too.”

“I’ll make sure we do!” Ahsoka smiled back.

She really did like his son. He was just so… _bright_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HC Luke as gay and asexual - and if you want to ask questions about that then feel free to ask me! And if you don't see him that way, that's okay too. We can talk about it! I love how so many people can see the same character in so many different ways.   
> Anyways, that's what I've got for this week. Hopefully I'll be able to update next week, but I'm not sure...   
> Thank you so much for reading!


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke tries this whole "being a Jedi" thing. Key word is "tries".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Another rather short chapter, sorry about that! Next week's should be a bit longer. :3

Someone was knocking at Anakin’s door.

It wasn’t much of a surprise as to who, exactly, was doing the knocking – even if his Force presence didn’t give it away, there really was only one person who would want to see him, let alone this early in the morning cycle.

Anakin slowly pulled himself out of bed and stretched his legs. He wished he could move faster, but knew it was important to make sure his legs were able to carry him.

After testing that, he stood up and walked swiftly to the door to his room.

He opened the door to find Luke waiting patiently for him. The boy was clearly a little nervous, but seemed to be trying to hide it.

Anakin smiled as nicely as he could. “What is it?”

Luke took a deep breath through his nose. “I want you to teach me.”

That was a little unexpected. “Huh?”

“The Force. I want you to teach me how to use it.”

“You want me… to teach you… now?”

Luke shrugged. “Well, unless you’re busy right now.” He peered into Anakin’s room, as if testing him. Anakin crossed his arms over his chest and raised a brow.

“I would have thought you might be a little wary of me.”

Luke frowned at that. “I have good reason to trust you enough to teach me some things. But the second you bring up the Dark side, I’m reporting you to Mothma.”

Anakin chuckled and shook his head. This boy, so eager to learn, so unprepared to face the Dark.

“I promise not to teach you anything that will harm you.” He said this with a smile he hoped to be encouraging. Luke smiled back, so maybe he succeeded.

“So, where do we start?” Clearly, his son had some kind of caf before he visited Anakin.

Anakin blanked for a solid moment as he scrambled for old half-forgotten teachings from another era. How would he teach this young man? He certainly couldn’t tell him about the Jedi, as he had forfeit all ties to that Order when he destroyed it. Plus, he didn’t want that kind of life for Luke. A life stripped of feeling, of holding your loved ones at a distance, of forcing yourself into a strict doctrine that would never fix you…

So, Anakin still had some issues. Some pretty big ones, to be honest.

But Ahsoka seemed to want this. At least, if she didn’t, she would have said something by now.

So… what would he teach his son? Not the Jedi teachings, nor the Sith - that would be even more disastrous.

But what did his son even know? Perhaps that was a better place to start.

Anakin looked down at Luke, who was unaware of this entire internal monologue. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

“Well, we could start with what you know, and build from there. Is there a training room around here somewhere? These little sleeping quarters are too small.”

Luke ran a hand through his hair and pursed his lips. “Um. I think there’s a small training room – to shoot training droids and stuff? – not far from the mess hall.”

“Great,” Anakin said, “Let’s start with that.” He stepped out of his room and whooshed past Luke, his early morning tiredness quickly receding from his old limbs.

Things were finally starting to feel right in the galaxy.

* * *

Luke Skywalker was more than ready to pick back up on learning about the Force. Ahsoka had been the one to teach him how to use his power to protect himself. She taught him how to wrap his own presence tightly around himself, to keep his existence hidden. Ben would watch over her as she taught him, and seemed to be training her on how to teach. He made her stick to the basics, and whenever she would stray off track he would sternly remind her what was at stake. When Ben wasn’t around, she would teach him different things – how to use the Force to run faster, jump higher, survive longer… but she made him promise not to use his power excessively. There were people who were looking for children like him, children that had this immense power, and they would take him away if he was ever found out.

But he wanted to know _more_. He wanted to know why he had the Force, where it came from and what the extent of his powers were. He wanted to know everything there was to know, and now that he had a teacher…

Well, the teacher was Darth Vader, the murderer of his father. He certainly felt conflicted about that. But Ahsoka’s ghost had told him to trust the man before him.

Cin knew his father. Perhaps he’d be able to get more information about Anakin from the ex-Sith as well, and that was a major bonus.

Luke tried to stay ahead of Cin as he walked down the sparse hallways of Home One, but Cin’s pace was just too fast for him to keep up.

According to his debriefing, Emperor Palpatine had added at least one extra foot of steel in his spine… during the reconstruction surgery it had been taken out, but he was still a _massive_ human being. He walked swiftly, and Luke could only go so fast in these narrow hallways at the same time.

The small training room wasn’t too far from the mess hall, but the mess hall was a bit of a walk from Cin’s room.

“So, uh, do you want to know what I know?” Luke asked hesitantly. It was a few minutes before they reached the training room, and he didn’t exactly want to spend those few minutes in an awkward silence.

Cin paused for half a second, then nodded. “Yes.” He slowed down a fraction of a pace – whether that was because he noticed Luke was having a hard time keeping up or not was unknown – and turned back to look at him.

Luke always felt uncomfortable when Cin looked at him. It wasn’t a predatory gaze, and it wasn’t dangerous, persay, but it certainly was… intense. He didn’t quite know what to make of Cin, but he felt strange around the older man. It was as if there was still some secret he couldn’t quite pick up on. Cin watched him as if he held some great importance – and he did, that was certain, because he was one of the Empire’s Most Wanted – but it seemed to mean something different with Cin.

He always seemed sad when he looked at Luke.

Luke shook off that odd feeling and thought back to those early mornings on Tatooine with Ahsoka. What _did_ he know?

“I know some shielding and basic enhancements.” He nodded a greeting to another rebel who was walking down the hallway. The rebel had regarded them both with a reserved anxiety, which Luke understood. Cin was still rather intimidating, even if he really shouldn’t have been. He still had an aura that seemed to demand respect. Luke had a feeling that that was something that had existed even before he became Darth Vader. To see Luke Skywalker, walk down the halls with a renowned war criminal, was certainly not something anyone was quite used to.

Cin completely ignored the rebel soldier and continued walking ahead of Luke. “I see. What do you know of the katas?  The lightsaber forms? How to manipulate objects in the world with your power?”

Luke pulled a blank. “Uhh. Nothing?” He laughed nervously. “I never had a lot of time to learn this stuff.”

Cin took a deep breath. “I see.” They walked past the mess hall. The training room was just a few steps away. Cin opened its doors with the Force before they even got that much closer. Luke thought he might have been showing off.

“I see we have a lot to work on.” He walked through the doorway. When Luke followed, he shut the door behind him. “Sit down with me.” He moved to the middle of the room and, after a moment of struggle, sat down cross-legged on the floor.

Luke followed.

Cin paused for just a moment. “You know,” he said, “I… have not taught someone in many years. I will do my best. But I will not teach you the way of the Jedi.”

What? “But you said you’d teach me –“

“I said I’d teach you the way of the Force. The Jedi doctrine failed me, as did the Sith. You don’t have to be a Jedi or a Sith to use the Force.”

That threw Luke for a bit of a loop. “I… I guess you’re right.”

“I tend to be.” Cin smiled a little. “Now, I don’t agree with the Jedi. But I will try my best to teach you some of their techniques. Meditation, katas, the technical areas. But their regulations I will not teach. If you wish to be a Jedi of old, you will have to learn their doctrine elsewhere.”

Luke nodded, still a little shell shocked. “So… where do we start?”

Cin smiled again, this time wider. “Close your eyes.”

Luke took a deep breath, weighed his options, then did what he was told.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think! I am trying to ignore the fact that I have a Visual Design midterm tomorrow that I know basically nothing about.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh, Luke...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya! Please take this slightly longer chapter as an apology, as I am absolutely swamped with work right now (I've got a screenplay due on Monday, among other projects, and I'll be driving from Los Angeles to San Francisco, so that's half my weekend right there QAQ) so next week there won't be an update. I plan on finishing this thing, damn it! I just... have a lot of coursework to get out of the way first.

Training to be a Jedi was _exhausting_. It was entirely different from those early mornings on Tatooine, or from X-wing drills, or even from the grueling farmhand life. There was something more about it that just drained him, physically and emotionally.

Cin told him this meant he was making progress. Luke just wanted to take a break.

The katas he had been taught were difficult enough without a lightsaber. Cin had told him he didn’t want to train Luke in the ways of lightsaber combat just yet, as he had so much more to learn. When Luke had asked why not, he smiled. “In the Temple, we did not teach younglings how to use a lightsaber until they understood each kata forwards and backwards,” he told Luke, “It will be the same for you.”

Luke didn’t like the sound of that very much. Especially when each kata was painstakingly detailed, and even the slightest of mistakes meant he had to do it over again. It took intense concentration, and he found himself struggling often.

It was strange, though. Cin did each kata with him, and even with his robotic limbs he seemed to move much more gracefully than Luke could ever hope to be. It was weird to see such a broken-looking man close his eyes and _move_ as if he was made from water.

To be honest, Luke was a little jealous. But Cin had been doing katas for many years before Luke was even born, so perhaps he shouldn’t have been.

It didn’t quite help though, that when the katas were done, Luke needed to take a shower and recover while Cin was simply ready to face the day with a refreshed grin on his face.

“You’ll be even better than me, one day.” Cin told him one day, only a week or two after they officially started training. “I know this as a fact.”

Luke laughed at the time. He was covered in sweat and panting, preparing himself for the next set of katas, and couldn’t feel as if Cin’s statement were any further from the truth.

But as the weeks went on, and the katas began to seem less tiring, he began to feel… different. It was easier to move. The world around him seemed brighter. It was almost as if he felt things more strongly – which was debatably a good thing, because he already felt emotions strongly enough as is.

He tried to tell Leia about it. One night, they were sitting down for a dinner of tubers and a meat-like paste. Han was busy playing with her hair, because he’s Han, and when Leia and Luke were talking about how their respective responsibilities were going, he wasn’t particularly good at paying attention.

“Cin really knows what he’s doing,” Luke had said, “I really think it’d be good for you to train with him, too.”

Leia scoffed. “He may work for us now, but I’m not going to let him teach me.” At Luke’s slightly offended look, she sighed. “I just can’t, Luke. I know him in a way that you don’t.”

“People can change, Leia,” he said quietly, “I trust that.” He frowned. “But if you need time, I understand.”

She smiled, but it wasn’t much better than the frown. “Thank you.”

Han yawned as he leaned back from Leia’s hair and shoveled a spoonful of tubers in his mouth. “I don’t get it. You say he’s helped you get in touch with the Force or whatever, but all you’ve done are those stupid katas.” He raised a brow. “Looks to me like you’re just getting a good workout.”

Luke rolled his eyes. “Okay, Han.”

That’s really all you could say to him about the matter.

* * *

 

Morit was much more interested in his training. Luke appreciated that – at least he had one friend who wanted to hear him babble on and on about the Force.

They usually met up once a week or so to hang out and chat. Luke still had a hopeless crush on him, but wanted to see where a friendship would go with him first.

It was almost a month after he started training under Cin’s tutelage. He was waiting for his friend in the training room he usually spent most mornings in – they had decided this week they were going to spar using the knowledge Luke had gained from his katas. If he did well, he would tell Cin about it the next day and see if he was ready to start actual combat training. Sure, it had only been a month since they started, but they were in a war. Sometimes these experiences needed to be sped up a little, for the sake of everyone else.

He grabbed a wooden practice saber and sat down in the middle of the floor. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, taking in the room around him. It opened up like a three-dimensional map behind his eyelids. He could see the walls, the door, the people walking by… it was amazing. He would never get used to this feeling.

He was almost too distracted by it to notice Morit walk in.

 _Almost_.

He decided not to move, though. He wanted Morit to think he had the upper hand. He felt through the Force as Morit silently crept over to the cabinet that stored the practice sabers. He saw as Morit grabbed one and began to prowl up behind him. When Morit raised his saber to strike, Luke opened his eyes and threw up his sword at just the last minute, blocking a strike that would have absolutely bruised his face.

He pushed Morit back with a weak Force push and jumped into a standing position.

“Nice to see you!” He said cheerfully. Morit rolled his eyes.

“You got here early.” He snorted, then leapt forward, on the attack.

“What can I say? I was excited to see you.” Luke grinned cheekily and defended himself. “So, how have you been?”

Morit stepped back and began to circle Luke. Luke responded in kind. “Pretty good,” he shrugged, “Mothma has me going on relief missions mostly, but she knows I could be a lot more help to her on the battlefield.”

Luke tilted his head. “She does?”

Morit grinned. “Yeah. These aren’t for show, you know.” He gestured to the arm holding the practice saber – the one covered in strange markings that looked… cybernetic. Luke frowned, confused.

“What do you mean?” He asked.

“I mean I have cybernetic implants, duh. They enhance my senses and improve my fighting skill.” He twirls the practice saber in one hand, then lunges at Luke again. “Kind of like your Force.”

Luke was pushed back by the force of Morit’s attack. “Oh, cool!” He exclaimed, then tried to push back. It seemed Morit would not budge, though. “How did you get those?” He pushed forward one more time, then retreated back a few paces.

“Empire. I was a test subject.” Morit smiled. “I got out.”

Luke frowned. “I’m sorry.” He attacked again, aiming high but going low.

“Don’t be. I survived.” Morit was tripped up and got knocked off balance.

“Were there others?” Luke asked, though he knew he shouldn’t have. Morit rushed forward and sliced down, but Luke quickly dodged that.

“A few.” Morit went quiet. He stood still, no longer attacking. Luke stopped as well. “My sister.”

“What?!” Luke dropped his saber in shock. “We have to save her!”

Morit was on him in seconds, the practice saber at his throat. “You shouldn’t have gotten distracted.”

Luke gulped. He stared into Morit’s eyes and felt a little dizzy. “Okay, you win,” he said uneasily, “But… don’t you want to save her?”

Morit sighed. “Do you think the Rebellion, spread tight as is, would be willing to attack an armed Imperial base to save one person?” He dropped his saber and shook his head.

“I’d do it.” Luke said immediately. “It’s the right thing to do.”

Morit froze, then looked up at him. “You would?”

Luke nodded. “Absolutely. She’s important to you. We have to do something.”

Morit smiled. “Thank you, Luke.”

Luke blushed a bright red. “No problem.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's it for this week! Happy Thanksgiving, and don't forget to hug your pets and tell them I love them. All animals are accepted and loved, but I love dogs the most. 
> 
> ... Can you tell I haven't gotten enough sleep this week? LOL.


End file.
